AE amputees invited to participate in prosthetics research

[Brandon R Rohrer]

Dear AMP-L list subscribers,

Hello.  My name is Brandon Rohrer, and I am a graduate student researcher at
the Massachusetts Institute of Technology studying arm prosthesis use.  I
would like to invite you to participate in a study designed to help improve
above-elbow arm prostheses.  For participating in the study you will receive
$50 in addition to reimbursement for your travel expenses.

I work at the M.I.T. Newman Laboratory for Biomechanics and Human
Rehabilitation directed by Professor Neville Hogan.  As the name indicates, a
portion of this laboratory is dedicated to studying human rehabilitation.  Two
of our main goals are rehabilitating victims of stroke and understanding how to
make arm amputation prostheses easier to use.  We have been conducting arm
prosthesis research here for over 30 years.

In the study I am conducting, you would be fitted with a cable operated
prosthesis that has been modified to include power-assist capability.  This
means that the prosthesis 'helps' its wearer to move it in the same way an
automobile's power-steering 'helps' the driver to move the steering wheel.  To
our knowledge, this prosthesis is the first of its type.

You would be asked to sit in a chair and turn a crank in a semi-circular
pattern with the power-assisted prosthesis.  You will be able to see two
cursors on a computer screen.  One will represent your position and one will be
a moving target.  Your job will be to track the moving target as closely as
possible.  The experiment should last just under 2 hours.

No previous experience with a prosthesis is necessary.  Both body-powered and
motorized prosthesis users are eligible.  Amputees with any length above-elbow
amputation are eligible (the apparatus is unfortunately not well suited to
elbow disarticulation or shoulder disarticulation amputees).

By participating in this study, you will help us to find a method by which we
can objectively compare different prostheses.  The ability to compare
prosthesis function will help us determine which types of prostheses best
meet their wearer's needs which in turn will help determine future prosthesis
designs.

If you are interested in participating in this study or have any questions at
all, please contact me at work, at home, or through e-mail.



Sincerely,

Brandon Rohrer
rohrer at mit.edu