Magnets can be found in various facets of the medical field today, but a group of scientists at MIT and Brown University are the latest team of innovators to push the limits of scientific discovery with these powerful rare-earth elements. Utilizing a set of small magnets, the team hopes to employ this technology as a highly sophisticated method to monitor muscle movements in real time, affording amputee patients greater control over their prosthetic limb(s). With the goal to closely mimic what would be the patient’s natural limb movement, the team’s efforts have already shown promising results for accuracy and safety.  In a statement released by Thomas Roberts, a professor of biology in Brown's Department of Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology, he notes, “This technique gives us the ability to measure muscle mechanical function during ordinary movements, which is essential for understanding how muscles work to move us around.” The future of prosthetic limb research largely depends on scientists’ ability to understand the correlation between muscle physiology and functional morphology and biometrics. And while the concept of measuring muscles’ mechanical functions is not new, the ideology of fully tracking and understanding the data is.  Medical professionals currently employ a method called surface electromyography (EMG) to track a patient’s muscle movements via electrodes attached to the surface of the skin or surgically implanted under the skin. Although this method has proven its worth, providing doctors with never-before-accessible data, its limitations cannot be overlooked as the technology fails to measure a patient’s muscle length and velocity. Void of this invaluable data, researchers continue to face hurdles in their attempts to improve the accuracy of controlling a patient’s prosthetic limb. 

The Future of Prosthetic Limb Control 

An initiative years in the making, MIT and Brown have been testing their approach known as magnetomicrometry on turkeys. This method employs the use of small magnetic beads implanted in the muscle and tracked via a sensor to measure the distance between two magnets. From minute movements in a laboratory setting to large-scale testing using a specially made obstacle course, the team was able to track the turkey’s movements when exposed to real-world circumstances, leading to the discovery that they could accurately calculate muscle lengths in under a millisecond. In the years that followed, continued successes have been recorded, specifically when referring to safety. Not only has it been determined that the magnetic beads are safe when inserted in a patient’s body, but these implanted beads could potentially last the duration of the patient’s lifetime due to a unique gold and polymer coating covering the bead’s magnetic core. In addition, magnets do not require an outside power source to function, unlike other similar medical devices, and therefore do not need to be recharged. 

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As history has proven, medicine and magnets have a synergistic relationship capable of achieving scientific breakthroughs that continue to impact the lives of patients across the globe. Whether you are making medical history, creating the latest technology with magnets, or simply looking for a fun craft to do with your grandkids this weekend, our blog is the perfect place to get inspired! Check back for weekly updates, and remember to contact our magnetic masters with any questions. We are always happy to assist you.