A Virtual Integrated Environment for phantom limb pain treatment and Modular Prosthetic Limb training

Abstract

We explored the use of the Virtual Integrated Environment (VIE), developed by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab (JHU/APL), in treating phantom limb pain in seven upper-extremity amputees. Further, we tested pattern recognition control of a virtual avatar using surface electromyography signals captured from subjects' residual limbs. The majority of patients responded to treatment, reporting decreased pain intensity and symptoms. Six of seven subjects showed greater than eighty percent classification accuracies for at least seven motion classes. After successfully operating the VIE, one subject underwent preliminary testing with an advanced myoelectric prosthesis, the Modular Prosthetic Limb, also developed by JHU/APL.