A robotic suit that reads brain signals and helps people with mobility problems will be available to rent in Japan for US$2,200 (S$3,217) a month starting on Friday.
This is an invention that may have far-reaching benefits for the disabled and elderly. HAL - short for 'hybrid assistive limb' - is a computerised suit with sensors that read brain signals directing limb movement through the skin. The 22 pound (10 kilogramme) battery-operated computer system is belted to the waist. It captures the brain signals and relays them to mechanical leg braces strapped to the thighs and knees, which then provide robotic assistance to people as they walk. HAL comes in three sizes - small, medium and large - and also has a one-leg version for a 150,000 yen (S$2,193) monthly rental fee.
In other Medical News today
Putting a fan in your baby's bedroom may cut the risk of sudden infant death syndrome, according to a new study, published this month in Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. "What we found in this study is that if an infant had a fan that was used in the sleeping room, the infant's risk of SIDS was reduced by 72 percent compared to no fan in the room," study senior author De-Kun Li, a reproductive and perinatal epidemiologist in the division of research at Kaiser Permanente in Oakland, Calif., told HealthDay. A Fan in Your Baby's Room May Reduce SIDS Risk
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), the second largest drug maker in the world, has announced that the company will set up a new manufacturing production line in Nashik, Maharashtra to manufacture 300 million tablets of albendazole per year for the treatment of Lymphatic Filariasis (LF). Worldwide more than 1.3 billion people live at risk of disability and disfigurement caused by LF, and one-third of those at risk live in India. WHO’s Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis, uses once-yearly treatment of at-risk individuals using albendazole plus either Mectizan or diethylcarbamazine [DEC), supplied by GSK and Merck & Co. Since the programme began in 2000, more than 1.9 billion treatments have been given to over 570 million people in 48 of the 83 countries with endemic LF.
The Audit Commission, the national body responsible for evaluating the financial performance of our public services, has awarded the Somerset Partnership NHS Foundation Trust a rating of "Good" for the way it spends its budget, manages its internal financial controls and offers the taxpayers of Somerset value for money. Somerset Partnership Trust is responsible for spending over £54 million each year delivering specialist mental health and learning disability services. The Trust employs just over 1,200 and last year saw over 13,000 new client referrals.
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