Paralysed man uses power of thought to move his arm

30th Mar 2017

A world-first procedure has allowed Bill Kochevar to be able to move his arms through the power of thought. 

Bill was initially paralysed from the neck down after a road accident. He now has electrical implants in the motor cortex of his brain and sensors in his forearms, which allow the muscles to respond to requests. 

So far, Bill has managed to reach and grasp, allowing him to be able to eat and drink on his own. This is a relatively slow process, but the scientists at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland suggest this proof of concept will hope to streamline technology for future treatment. 

The main difference with advanced technology, is that previous patients had to trigger movement using whatever they had left before being paralysed. In contrast, the new technology allows solely thought to trigger the action. 

To read the full article, visit The Lancet website