Wyss InstituteApparel – Wyss Institute

MyoExo: Wearable Muscle-Centric Sensors for Improved Assessment of Neurological Disorders

Jessica Leff — Wed, 01 May 2024 14:00:27 +0000

Abnormal changes in muscle function are hallmarks of a collection of neurological disorders, including Parkinson’s Disease (PD), essential tremor, epilepsy, certain sleep disorders, and others. For example, patients with PD can have slowed movements (bradykinesia), tremors, and muscle stiffness (rigidity) – doctors need to detect at least two of the three signs for a positive diagnosis.

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Soft robotic, wearable device improves walking for individual with Parkinson’s disease

Jessica Leff — Fri, 05 Jan 2024 14:21:45 +0000

By Leah Burrows / SEAS Communications (CAMBRIDGE, Mass.) — Freezing is one of the most common and debilitating symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, a neurodegenerative disorder that affects more than 9 million people worldwide. When individuals with Parkinson’s disease freeze, they suddenly lose the ability to move their feet, often mid-stride, resulting in a series of staccato stutter steps that…

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Wearable Technology for True Movement Quantification

admin — Wed, 19 Apr 2023 20:47:43 +0000

Athletes undergoing daily training and patients undergoing physical therapy, often do not have a way to quantitatively assess their progress or obtain actionable insights that help to enhance performance or avoid injuries. There are vast options for wearable devices and activity monitors, however, those are generally limited to tracking cardiovascular activities and heart-related data.

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Clearing a path for non-invasive muscle therapy for the elderly

Jessica Leff — Wed, 22 Mar 2023 17:57:17 +0000

By Benjamin Boettner (BOSTON) — Mechanotherapy, the concept of using mechanical forces to stimulate tissue healing, has been used for decades as a form of physical therapy to help heal injured muscles. However, the biological basis and optimal settings for mechanotherapies are still poorly understood, especially with respect to elderly patients. Given the well-known decline in healing ability…

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Wyss Technologies Top Harvard’s 2022 President’s Innovation Challenge

Seth Kroll — Mon, 09 May 2022 15:20:43 +0000

(BOSTON) – Students and selected alumni competed over the course of seven months for a share of $510,000 in the 2022 Harvard President’s Innovation Challenge (PIC). On May 5, two teams won top prizes for technologies developed at the Wyss Institute. Benjamin Freedman, Ph.D. and the Limax Biosciences team won the $75,000 first-place prize in the Health & Life Sciences Track for their Tough…

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Sensing Parkinson’s symptoms

Jessica Leff — Tue, 29 Mar 2022 19:24:31 +0000

By Matthew Goisman/SEAS Communications BOSTON – Nearly one million people in the United States live with Parkinson’s disease. The degenerative condition affects the neurons in the brain that produce the neurotransmitter dopamine, which can impact motor function in multiple ways, including muscle tremors, limb rigidity and difficulty walking. There is currently no cure for Parkinson’s disease…

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Soft Robotic Glove for Neuromuscular Rehabilitation

admin — Tue, 29 Jun 2021 23:34:39 +0000

The majority of people with neurological conditions, such as stroke and spinal cord injury, suffer from loss of motor function in one or both hands, which can greatly reduce their quality of life. Tasks often taken for granted become frustrating or nearly impossible due to tight and spastic muscles, reduced grasping strength, and general lack of coordination in the hand.

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Ultra-sensitive and resilient sensor for soft robotic systems

Jessica Leff — Wed, 11 Nov 2020 16:00:48 +0000

By Leah Burrows / SEAS communications (Cambridge, MASS.) — Think about your favorite t-shirt, the one you’ve worn a hundred times, and all the abuse you’ve put it through. You’ve washed it more times than you can remember, spilled on it, stretched it, crumbled it up, maybe even singed it leaning over the stove once. We put our clothes through a lot and if the smart textiles of the future are…

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Smart Thermally Actuating Textiles

Jessica Leff — Thu, 02 Jul 2020 15:00:44 +0000

Smart Thermally Actuating Textiles (STATs) are tightly-sealed pouches that are able to change shape or maintain their pressure even in environments in which the exterior temperature or airflow fluctuates. This soft robotics technology could be developed as novel components of rehabilitation therapies or to prevent tissue damage in hospital bed or wheelchair-bound individuals. Credit: Wyss…

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Robotic textiles are fueled up and take action

Jessica Leff — Thu, 02 Jul 2020 14:40:33 +0000

By Benjamin Boettner Soft robots are on the rise largely because of their ability to interact with and conform to the human body in ways that stiff and rigid robots cannot. As wearable devices that often use specially engineered fabrics, soft robots are starting to become the basis for new rehabilitation therapies, or as enhancements that protect wearers while they perform strenuous tasks.

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