Six years ago at his home in war-torn Gaza, Sobhi, at the age of 9, was severely injured when a bomb landed on his family’s farm field where he was helping his parents work. Three days passed before Sobhi awoke to find himself in a hospital with only half a left leg. Weeks passed before he got out of bed and started a new life on crutches.

But in October, in a Federal Way clinic in the Seattle area, the Palestinian teen with a 100-watt smile stood on two feet again, thanks to a team of Seattle area residents who donated their time and money to bring him to Washington and get him a prosthetic leg.

How did it happen?  The Palestine Children’s Relief Fund knew that a group of people in Seatlle had helped raise funds following the attacks.  PCRF asked them to help with Sobhi.  In turn, help was provided by the Preferred Orthotics and Prosthetic Services in Federal Way founded by Fred Cato and Karl Entenmann, both graduates of the University of Washington’s Prosthetic program. Entenmann, a native of Seattle, said he and his team would make the socket to fit over Sobhi’s leg. He then called manufacturers to see if they could donate the other parts for free.

Now Sobhi is going to school in the Seattle area while he receives fittings and physical therapy….and says his prosthetic leg feels just like his real one did.  Kudos to the Seattle volunteers and professional prosthetists for making another “given limb” success story.

Through the Given Limb website, we receive many questions about what to do with prosthetic limbs that are not being used anymore.  Often when a family member who was an amputee passes away, the family members don’t want to discard his/her expensive prosthetic limbs, and are looking for some way to donate them to someone who is in need.  To our knowledge, there is no clearinghouse or agency that tries to match unused prosthetic devices with amputees in need.  We welcome feedback from anyone who has had experience donating prosthetic limbs, or who has knowledge of organizations that facilitate such donations.

Prosthetic technology has been advancing quickly, especially with respect to prosthetic legs.  New technology allows leg amputees to participate in many sports and activities that enhance quality of life.  The same may not be true of prosthetic arm technology.  While there are exciting efforts currently under development to create “bionic” arms, upper limb amputees still face many limitations in dealing with everyday life issues.  The resumption of athletic pursuits with a prosthetic arm may often seem unrealistic.  

Because the number of people with prosthetic arms is small, even relatively simple sports-related prosthetic arm modifications may not be available to the typical person.  But it may be that, with a limited amount of funding and access to basic engineering resources, some useful arm modifications could be developed to allow those with prosthetic arms to enjoy some of the activities that were important to them before their amputation, or to take on new activities to enhance their life.  For example, some engineering students at Duke University developed an arm modification that allowed a young man who lost an arm in Iraq to resume rock-climbing.

The Given Limb Foundation would like your ideas! Are there activities you would like to take on, if only your prosthetic arm had some modification to allow it?  Have you made modifications to your arm to allow you to participate in sports or other recreational activities?  Do you have information to share about how you or others you know have resumed athletic activities after an amputation?  

We have learned that the Challenged Athletes Foundation has grants available to those who need assistance with equipment, travel, etc., in order to resume athletic pursuits. We welcome other ideas for funding as well as ideas for prosthetic modifications.

In June, 5-time PGA tour winner, Ken Green, lost his right leg in a car accident. The accident also claimed the life of girlfriend and brother. But last week, Green took to the links with a prosthetic leg and played 11 holes. He finished 3 over par. Green still has severe pain that is not managed well by medication, but hopefully conquering that challenge will also be part of his comeback.

 I hope all interested in prosthetic developments saw this week’s 60 Minutes…if not, below is a link to the video.  Jon Kuniholm, the Duke biomedical engineer featured in the story, is a Given Limb board member and we are all proud of his team’s accomplishments.  In fact, Peter Truskey, whose summer work at Duke was reported in this blog, was part of the team focused on the arm that was featured by Jon on the show.  Peter’s work was funded by another Given Limb board member.

 http://www.cbs.com/primetime/60_minutes/video/video.php?cid=927554855&pid=k9ZHLvJ5VysMnDVZurp9S3UPlYaOloDm&play=true&cc=0

As of now, the student on the myoelectric signal processing project has written software to classify and analyze the data. He is still working out a few bugs in the data analysis, but so far the processor is mostly able to classify and recognize classes of data….which, translated, means it is able to identify electrical “signatures” for different types of arm movements.  Additionally, the team has written the software for showing the data in real time. The next step, in addition to finishing up some final parts of the software, is to connect the signal processing to a real signal. Using a beagle board (like the guts of a mini computer …no screen or keyboard, just the innards needed to “drive” an arm or a hand), the team will be able to hook up live electrodes and test out the processor with some real data. Stay tuned!

One of the great things about the myoelectric signal processor project is that it is all “open source,” which means others can have access to the software to collaborate and make improvements.  In order to keep the software open source, all of the signal processing is being performed in the commonly used software Javascript.  Data analysis is being performed to measure the range and repeatability of the measurements (for the truly data-savvy out there, the student is using a Linear Descriminant Analysis (LDA), as well as using a Gaussian statistical model). Additionally, the signal processor will be able to plot out the  voltages being recorded by the electrodes in real time. This plot is similar to an electrocardiogram signal and will show voltages versus time. This will be useful because it will allow the team to see the voltage reactions from different movements and it will also allow them to make sure that the electrodes and circuit board are properly connected and all voltages are being recorded.

The student has been working on the signal processing aspect of the myoelectric arm project. The role of the signal processing is to collect live data from a circuit board that is connected to the electrodes placed on the person’s arm.  First the person is guided through a series of hand motions while the device is attached. These include certain types of grips or movements like pointing. The data comes in as voltages which are then run through a series of algorithms or programs to classify the data. Once the data is classified then the subject should be able to move their hand more freely and the signal processor will recognize certain classes of movement.  Next post will be more about how the information from this research will be shared.

Duke student engineer Peter Truskey has continued to work the “myopen” project this summer with Given Limb board member, Jon Kunihom, as mentor.  In mid-July they attended a conference where they demonstrated the project and what they had completed to that point. Up until the conference, Peter continued to work on the software for the collection and analysis of the data. The software was written into Javascript so that it was completely open source and would be available to anybody to make changes to it. Since they returned from the conference, however, they have shifted their focus onto making a prototype of the board they been designing. The board is the centerpiece of the project and is where the  electrodes that collect the electromyograms (EMGs) will connect. The board will collect the analog data and using the software, process it and output a signal. Peter has been helping them with some final pieces of the board recently so that it can be prototyped. Some of the main issues they have been focusing on is what components to use.  They have been designing several similar prototypes with certain parts being varied. They should be ready to make these prototypes shortly, and once they are made, they can test them to determine the final design.  What this all means is that technology is now one step closer to creating a higher functioning myoelectric arm.  Stay tuned.

The July issue of Gourmet Magazine had a great article by J.J. Goode about her trials and tribulations in her endeavors to cook meals—lovingly—everything from peeling potatoes to removing hot dishes from the oven to opening a bottom of wine, the articles gives a good inside view of the challenges of cooking with one arm—To view the article, click this link:

http://www.gourmet.com/magazine/2000s/2009/07/single-handed-cooking