The tiny sensor is implanted in the nerve of the injured limb - for example, in a finger - and is connected directly to a healthy nerve. Each time the limb touches an object, the sensor is activated and conducts an electric current to the functioning nerve, which recreates the feeling of touch.
According to the researchers at Tel Aviv University, the sensor is a tested and safe technology that is suited to the human body and could be implanted anywhere inside of it once clinical trials are complete.
The researchers said that this unique project began with a meeting between colleagues Dr Ben Maoz of the university’s Department of Biomedical Engineering, and surgeon Dr Amir Arami from the Sackler School of Medicine and the Microsurgery Unit in the Department of Hand Surgery at Sheba Medical Center.
“Dr Arami shared with me the difficulty he experiences in treating people who have lost tactile sensation in one organ or another because of injury,” said Dr...