Scientists Implant 'Computer-Brain Interface' In ALS Patients To Enable Them To Communicate

Doctors in the Netherlands claim they have successfully tested a new implantable computer-brain interface that allows patients suffering from the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) disease to spell messages, albeit very slowly.

The new technology was first tested on a 58-year-old woman who happens to be in the late stages of the disease that had rendered her unable to move her muscles or speak. Previously, her only mode of communication with rest of the world was through eye movements. However, with this new computer-brain interface, she is able to communicate by identifying a string of onscreen letters by imagining that she is pointing at them with her right hand.

"We've built a system that's reliable and autonomous that works at home without any extra help. There's not a single system that even comes close to this," chief author Nick Ramsey of the Rudolf Magnus Brain Center at the University Medical Center Utrecht said in a telephonic conversation with Reuters.

Because the technology is still in its infancy, the patient is currently only able to spell two letters per minute. But the researchers are optimistic that it will improve significantly over the years.

"The speed is not that important. It's the certainty with which you can express yourself," said Ramsey, adding that the woman can now communicate with people even in outdoor settings where her eye-tracking equipment does not always work.

The initial findings of the research were presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience on Nov. 12. The researchers stated that they were motivated by the idea of helping ALS patients to lead a better life at home with the help of technology that could be deployed continuously without any disfigurement or discomfort.

(You can find more about the findings in the New England Journal of Medicine.)