Brain Map Explains Phantom Limb Pain, Hints At Improved Prosthetics

• Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter
• August 25, 2025
• Full Page

“Phantom limb” pain has been a curious aftereffect of amputation, with people experiencing false sensations from a hand, arm or leg that is no longer there.

Researchers now think they know why phantom limb sensations occur.

It turns out that the brain m...

Bionic Knee Allows Better Movement For Amputees

• HealthDay Reporter
• Dennis Thompson
• July 11, 2025
• Full Page

“Better. Stronger. Faster.”

Those words were written for TV’s bionic "Six Million Dollar Man," but they could soon apply to everyday folks with above-the-knee amputations, a new study says.

A new bionic knee allows amputees to walk faster, climb s...

New Material Allows Amputees To Adjust Prosthetic Limb Fit Via Smartphone

• HealthDay Reporter
• Dennis Thompson
• March 26, 2025
• Full Page

Chafing, blisters and sores are common problems for people fitted with an artificial limb.

The artificial limb’s fixed, rigid shape can’t adapt to changes in a person’s body, ultimately causing it to rub against a person’s residual limb.

&ld...

Prosthetic Legs Controlled by Person's Own Neural System Bring Natural Gait

• HealthDay Reporter
• Dennis Thompson
• July 1, 2024
• Full Page

"Smart"prosthetic legs can help amputees achieve a natural walking gait, but it's done through robotic sensors and algorithms that drive the limb forward at predetermined rates.

A better way would be to give people full control over the limb through their nervous system ...

A Bionic Hand Melds With Woman's Own Bone, Nervous System

• HealthDay Reporter
• Alan Mozes
• October 12, 2023
• Full Page

Fifty years ago, the TV series "The Six Million Dollar Man"hyped a futuristic world of life-changing bionics with the stirring phrase: "We can rebuild him, we have the technology."

Cut to 2023, and researchers in Sweden appear to have delivered on that promise.

A S...

B 7/12 -- New Bionic Hand Implant Allows Control of All Fingers

• HealthDay Reporter
• Cara Murez
• July 12, 2023
• Full Page

A multinational team of engineers and surgeons has developed a bionic hand with a high level of function in every finger -- a significant advance for amputees.

The team, from the United States, Sweden, Australia and Italy, developed a way to reconfigure what remains of ...

A 'Bionic' Arm That Feels Like Her Very Own

• HealthDay Reporter
• Dennis Thompson
• September 3, 2021
• Full Page

Former Marine Cpl. Claudia Mitchell can hold a banana or a water bottle in her left hand without squishing it as she opens it.

She can use her left hand to help cut peaches for a pie. She can hold someone's hand without squeezing too hard, and she can grab her makeup bag...