Bionic leg helps amputees walk more naturally

Normally, during amputation, muscles are wrapped up to create soft padding for maximum comfort when using an artificial leg.

But this means control of nerves and natural leg movements are lost.

With the new technology, surgery to reconnect vital pairs of muscles on the leg stump is needed first – either during the amputation or later on.

Then, using sensors on these muscles, signals are sent to a robotic controller which helps the prosthetic leg calculate how much to bend the ankle and how much power to deliver when walking.

Information from muscle nerves is communicated to the prosthesis and then back to the patient, resembling the way a real limb works.

“So when the amputee thinks, they feel the limb moving naturally – those muscles move as they did when the limb was intact,” Prof Herr told journalists on a briefing.

“It’s as if they are able to feel their phantom limb and its movement,” he added.

And all through greater control from the human nervous system.

In a study on 14 amputees who had all lost one leg below the knee, seven were given the new “neuroprosthetic interface” during amputation and the other seven were given standard amputation care.

Their walking was then tested over flat ground, going up ramps and over obstacles.

Those with the new technology had a walking speed 41% faster than the other group – equivalent to people who have not lost a leg, the study found.

They were also better able to deal with slopes, go up and down steps and navigate obstructions.

“One of the main findings here is that a small increase in neural feedback from your amputated limb can restore significant bionic neural controllability,” said study author Hyungeun Song.

This could help amputees to move more naturally and freely, to the extent they could dance and run.

According to MIT researchers, external, about 60 patients around the world have received this type of surgery so far, which can also be done for people with arm amputations.