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From: mberkley@watdcsu.UUCP
Newsgroups: sci.med,sci.bio
Subject: Re: info wanted about research pgms. to make paraplegics walk
Message-ID: <2803@watdcsu.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 26-Nov-86 10:48:05 EST
Article-I.D.: watdcsu.2803
Posted: Wed Nov 26 10:48:05 1986
Date-Received: Thu, 27-Nov-86 05:47:32 EST
References: <517@instable.UUCP> <525@vaxb.calgary.UUCP>
Reply-To: mberkley@watdcsu.UUCP (J.M.Berkley - Computing Services)
Distribution: net
Organization: U of Waterloo, Ontario
Lines: 25
Xref: watmath sci.med:278 sci.bio:37

In article <525@vaxb.calgary.UUCP> you write:
>o  Within a few years, possibly as little as three, a
>   functional, marketable, prothesis will be widely available [4].  Work
>   toward a commercial FES system using specialized clothing with embedded
>   surface electrodes (nick-named "hot pants") has been going on at Wright
>   State Univ. under Dr. Petrosky.

Has anyone considered the problems of no pain feedback?

I once read an absolutely fascinating book by Dr. Paul
Brand about his work with lepers.  He  found that because
their nerves were damaged they couldn't feel pain, so that
they slowly destroyed their tissues through continued abuse.
They had to come up with some novel techniques to prevent
further damage to their limbs.

People using FES systems would have the same problem: they
wouldn't feel pain, so that if they were, for example,
dragging their feet, they would eventually cause severe damage
to their feet, ankles, etc.

Mike Berkley, Department of Computing Services, University of Waterloo

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