News

Our Plastic Society The phenomenon of cortical plasticity is no foreign concept to researchers and professionals in the neurotechnology field. As we discuss in our cover article this month [p1], there is considerable commercial potential for neurotech firms working in this area. Considering the enormous number of neurons in the central nervous system and the great extent of redundancy in neural systems, it should be no surprise that the brain has the capability to reroute, rewire, or repair itself.

Sensing Movement The quest to restore movement to those who have lost it—or some portion of it—to neurological diseases and disorders is as daunting as it is noble. Many of the first generation of neural engineers and functional electrical stimulation researchers concentrated their attention at the site of the dysfunction, or at the neural fibers that control the affected muscles. While this strate…

Scratching the Surface The market for surface stimulation products and systems, which includes TENS devices targeted at pain control and neuromuscular stimulators designed for rehabilitation and exercise therapy, has generally been regarded as an ugly stepsister of the neurostimulation field. Although application of electrical energy to the skin predates implanted or percutaneous stimulation , many…

Neural Signals Moves from BCI Pioneer to Commercial Vendor ial director Neural Signals, Inc. of Atlanta, GA, was founded in 1987 R. Kennedy to develop a brain-computer interface that would give a paralyzed patients the ability to communicate with the external world and to control external devices. Kennedy, who holds both an M.D. and a Ph.D., personally funded the company’s initial development of a novel implantable device for detecting and transmitting signals from the cerebral cortex.

Neural Signals Executive Comments on Market for Phrenic Nerve Stimulation Philip Kennedy, president of Neural Signals, Inc. and a pioneer in cortical control of neural prostheses, comments on NBR editor James Cavuoto’s publisher’s letter “A Breath of Fresh Air,” published in the March 2003 issue of Neurotech Business Report. I read with interest your editorial on the stimulator. This is an area I have been very interested in since an ALS patient of mine died.

A Breath of Fresh Air The diaphragm-pacing system implanted in Christopher Reeve last month of Cleveland [see article, p2] represents a victory for neurotechnology in many respects. To begin with, it is the first real-life endorsement of neural prostheses and functional electrical stimulation disabilities activist. While Reeve made a public endorsement of FES as part of his exercise regimen last ye…

Planting our Seeds Industry/university research programs offer an excellent opportunity for the neurotechnology industry to develop knowledge, intellectual property, and commercial products in this new field, as we discuss in on page 1 of this issue. Although there are many potential pitfalls to collaborative agreements confronting unprepared vendors, the benefits to our society and educational system make even unprofitable investments worthwhile in the long run.

Visual Prosthesis Market May Follow Uncharted Path Several recent developments from research teams and commercial developers working on visual prostheses have raised hopes and investor interest in retinal implants and other strategies for restoring vision to blind individuals. But a long road of testing, product cycles, clinician acceptance, and reimbursement issues awaits players in this market segment.

Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago Develops Robotic Walking Aid The Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago has introduced a new technology, known as Lokomat, that may help people with spinal cord injury regain lower limb locomotion. The device consists of a powered exoskeleton robot that delivers power to the hip and knee joints while the user’s upper-body weight is supported over a treadmill. Dr. Da…

The hardware problems with deep brain stimulation electrodes reported colleagues at the University of Toronto represent a temporary setback for the neurostimulation industry. The problems they encountered, though widespread, in no way diminish the promise and the value of DBS therapy for Parkinson’s Disease and other movement disorders. Indeed, as we discuss in our article, identification of the sp…