Wearable non-invasive neuroprosthesis for targeted sensory restoration in neuropathy
Peripheral neuropathy (PN), the most common complication of diabetes, leads to sensory loss and associated health issues as pain and increased fall risk. However, present treatments do not counteract sensory loss, but only partially manage its consequences. Electrical neural stimulation holds promise to restore sensations, but its efficacy and benefits in PN damaged nerves are yet unknown. We designed a wearable sensory neuroprosthesis (NeuroStep) providing targeted neurostimulation of the undamaged nerve portion and assessed its functionality in 14 PN participants. Our system partially restored lost sensations in all participants through a purposely calibrated neurostimulation, despite PN nerves being less sensitive than healthy nerves (N = 22). Participants improved cadence and functional gait and reported a decrease of neuropathic pain after one day. Restored sensations activated cortical patterns resembling naturally located foot sensations. NeuroStep restores real-time intuitive sensations in PN participants, holding potential to enhance functional and health outcomes while advancing effective non-invasive neuromodulation.
Authors
- Felix Beuschlein (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7826-3984)
- Staniša Raspopović (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0567-9051)
- Giacomo Valle (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2637-8007)
- Nicole Wenderoth (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3246-9386)
- Lauren Chee (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9234-5027)
- Carl Moritz Zipser (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4396-4796)
- Sanne Kikkert (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9952-4864)
- Noemi Gozzi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0126-7893)
- Nikolai Pfender (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3933-7463)
- Greta Preatoni (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2174-2375)
- Ingrid Odermatt (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-5900-3391)
Institutions
- University of Zurich (CH)
- LMU Klinikum (DE)
- ETH Zurich (CH)
- University Hospital of Zurich (CH)
- Universitätsklinik Balgrist (CH)
- Medical University of Vienna (AT)
- Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (DE)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Communications
- Published
- 2024-12-30
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-55152-7
- Citations
- 13
- Primary Topic
- Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Studies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 3.22
Funders
- National Science Foundation
- European Commission
- Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung
- Innosuisse - Schweizerische Agentur für Innovationsförderung
- Science Fund of the Republic of Serbia