MND BRIEF: Device Enables Severely Motor Disabled To Communicate

_In addition to not being able to move limb, in severe quadraplegia,  motor-disabled patients can become unable to communicate verbally too, since voice is the result of neuromotorial ability. Those disabled individuals are often fully conscious and awake, making their situation prison like._

An amazing development of fMRI technology has crossed the bridge between brain activity and social communication [1].  Reading brain electrical activity through electroencephalography already has allowed some patients communication through conversion of such electrical patterns to action such as driving a wheelchair or moving a robotic arm [2]. But spelling has prove more elusive until now, with fMRI analysis.

Then, quoting [1]"

"….By exploiting spatiotemporal characteristics of hemodynamic [blood circulation dynamics] responses, evoked by performing differently timed mental imagery tasks, our novel _**letter encoding technique** _allows_** translating**_ any freely chosen answer (letter-by-letter)_** into reliable and differentiable single-trial fMRI signals..**_.."

[![][1]][2]

fMRI of Brain

Well, this "letter encoding technique" does not look trivial….The illustration above, extracted from the research article shows the association of a thought letter to a fMRI pattern.

Such an association is nothing short of amazing.  Too good to be true? I hope not…

[![][3]][4]

Principles of the fMRI based spelling enabler (From Current Biology [1])

_**We are getting closer to the connection Mind Body…. **_

_**Sources:**_

1. [Current Biology][5] ; "A Real-Time fMRI-Based Spelling Device Immediately Enabling Robust Motor-Independent Communication"; 2012
2. [medinewsdigest][6] ; "The science behind executing a human brain's will through a robotic arm" ; may 2012
3. [medinewsdigest][7] ; "Cognitive rehabilitation techniques in Multiple Sclerosis" ; jan 2012

[1]: http://www.medinewsdigest.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/fMRI-of-Brain.png (fMRI of Brain)
[2]: http://www.medinewsdigest.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/fMRI-of-Brain.png
[3]: http://www.medinewsdigest.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/MRI-and-Thoughts-e1340988238975.png (MRI and Thoughts)
[4]: http://www.medinewsdigest.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/MRI-and-Thoughts.png
[5]: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982212005751
[6]: http://www.medinewsdigest.com/?p=4691
[7]: http://www.medinewsdigest.com/?p=3617

URL: http://www.medinewsdigest.com/?p=4813