Researchers in Italy and Switzerland have created a bionic hand that allows amputees to regain feeling in their fingers.
The invention is currently in clinical trials. It was applied to Dane Dennis Aabo, who lost his left arm from the elbow down in an accident.
In the test, the 36-year-old patient was able to identify the hardness of the objects he was gripping while blindfolded.
"The hand has sensors attached to each tendon in each finger. And we can use them to understand the force the patient exerts as they grasp an object. We use this information to induce precise stimulation of sensory neurons and thus restore this sensation in real time to the nervous system," explains researcher Silvestro Micera.
The device applied to the 36-year-old patient was temporary and was removed during surgery.
To create a permanent and sustainable prosthetic limb, scientists will need to significantly shrink the electronic components.
"The first time they turned it on it was amazing. Suddenly I started to feel things that I hadn't been able to for many years. I could understand round and hard and soft objects, and it was a wonderful feeling," the 36-year-old Dane describes.
The next challenge for scientists is a bionic hand so advanced that it can beat able-bodied people in a bra-de-fer.
