Paralysed man moves hand with brain power

A man who is paralysed from the neck down has become the first such patient to move his hand by the power of thought alone, according to the Daily Mail.

Thanks to a chip implanted in his brain, Ian Burkhart ushered in what doctors are calling a ‘bionic age’ which could revolutionise treatment for the disabled.

All he had to do was think intensely about moving his hand and the rest was done by the chip in less than a tenth of a second.

Mr Burkhart, 23, carried out a successful test of the ‘Neurobridge’ which doctors say could offer hope to stroke victims and those with muscular disorders.
 

A team from Ohio State University and research firm Battelle opened up the US patient’s skull and inserted the 0.15-inch chip into his brain to ‘read’ his thoughts.

The information is transmitted via cable to a computer which decodes it and adds commands that would normally come from the spinal column.

The computer is connected to a sleeve of electrodes on his arm which stimulates the muscle fibres to move.