When we hear the word bionic our minds (for those of us who are old enough) immediately go back to Steve Austin running super fast. I can still hear the words “We can rebuild him,” with that strange bionic sound they would input. Now that was the 70′s at its finest. Touch Bionics, however, does bionics for the everyday person struggle without a limb. They are bringing hope to people who have lost one of their hands with their i-Limb product. And, I’ll think you will agree, the results are far from perfect, but they are truly remarkable.
The thumb can turn to create much more realistic grips than traditional myoelectric prosthetics. It also allows for tighter grips utilizing less power. The prosthetic utilizes electrodes at the nerve locations. After some training, the patient can learn complex hand functions that were impossible before. Here are the different grips possible:
Key Grip:
Where the thumb closes down onto the side of the index finger. This grip is used to hold items such as a plate or a business card. The addition of wrist rotation enables the patient to turn a key in a lock in a totally ‘human’ way.
Power Grip:
Where all fingers and the thumb close down together to create a full-wrap grip. This grip would be used to hold a can of drink whilst opening the ring-pull, for example, and for carrying large objects such as a briefcase and/or shopping bag.
Precision Grip:
Where the index finger and thumb meet (or index finger, middle finger and thumb meet) in order to pick-up small objects and to hold objects when performing finer control tasks.
Index Point:
Where the thumb and fingers close but the index finger remains extended – this is yet another first from Touch Bionics and very important in today’s modern world. Patients have found this grip very useful for operating computer keyboards, telephone dial pads, ATM cash machines and a host of other everyday requirements.
The cost is still very high on the i-limb, with prices last year around $17k. The picture above is of the i-Limb without their skin overlay. Below is a video that shows the i-Limb in action. Following the video is a picture of the i-Limb that is skinned. It looks pretty darn realistic. Hopefully this helps a lot of people regain lost function.
I think that $17k is not too much if it achieves some semblance of normalcy.
I read the newspaper regarding the 2008 CBCPO conference in Winnipeg which reported that your company stated that at this time the i-limb is more appropriate for ADL and for the use in light to moderate work. It has limitations and is not suitable to be used in logging industry and operating heavy equipement. Please advise.
I am a congenital amputee as well as a registered nurse in pediatrics for over 25 years. I had a prosthesis that only moved the first two fingers and the thumb but no wrist flexion. The problem with it was the weight of the entire arm. Hopefully the weight is lighter on the i-limb. Insurance doesn’t cover any of this cost if it’s congenital.