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Content archived on 2024-05-29

Standing and walking of paraplegic persons with the help of functional electrical stimulation under the additional aspect of their regulation of blood pressure, heart rate and metabolism

Objective

A spinal cord injury (SCI) is a catastrophic event leaving patients with a loss of physical function, mobility, independence and enjoyment. Following SCI, there is also an increased risk of depression, anxiety and drug dependency. Recent developments in biomedical engineering have introduced functional electrical stimulation (FES) systems, which enable SCI patients to restore upright mobility.

This has the potential to enhance psychosocial outlook and to improve overall quality of life. But there might be a physiological barrier to upright mobility in paraplegic subjects. This project will try to determine during the process of training patients to restore walking and standing whether there are real physiological barriers and will try to establish, based on available know-how, ""best practice"" for further rehabilitation programs. University Sydney is a worldwide leading institution in the rehabilitation of SCI subjects comprising extensive collaborations to other research centres in Australia and Overseas. The successful applicant will receive training in matters of SCI rehabilitation and therapeutic exercise science. This will widen his experience gained in the Framework 5 Initiative NeuralPro to include clinical applications and work with patients. Otto Bo ck together with MED-EL, two world leaders in their respective fields, (mechatronic) prosthetics and cochlear implants have started a joint venture for research and development of FES devices.

The returning researcher will help improve communication and understanding between industry and research, provide important ""user""-feedback and help develop new products. The successful application of existing know-how from outside the European Community will help kick-start further projects and widen the market for the European Union. Owing to his previous employment, the researcher will be able to play an important and active role within the network of future European research projects.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

Keywords

Topic(s)

Call for proposal

FP6-2004-MOBILITY-6
See other projects for this call

Funding Scheme

OIF - Marie Curie actions-Outgoing International Fellowships

Coordinator

OTTO BOCK HEALTHCARE PRODUCTS GMBH
EU contribution
No data
Total cost
No data

Participants (1)