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TECNALIA wins a European Innovation Award for brain-muscle control system

29 October 2020

The ISMORE system has been rewarded in Impact Expected category of EARTO Innovation Awards

TECNALIA has obtained recognition at European level for its innovative ISMORE system, which connects brain, muscles and movement in paralysed patients. The system hacks the nervous system, deciphering movement intention to restore control of the joints, enabling patients to perform functional movements and interact with objects, activating functional neuroplasticity to deliver customised, non-invasive therapy that is a considerable improvement over current rehabilitation options.

ISMORE can cut post-stroke rehabilitation costs by up to 30% and also reduces patient hospitalisation days. The EARTO prize was awarded for the potential impact of the research on society.

Stroke

Incidence and prevalence of stroke constitute an unsolved problem and a leading cause of serious, long-term disabilities. There are currently almost eight million severely impaired and chronic patients in Europe, and stroke costs are estimated at around $34 billion globally per year.

The effectiveness of currently available rehabilitation therapies is lacking and more intense treatment is needed. The issues have been shifted onto into clinics, healthcare systems and insurance providers, all of whom bear the costs of rehabilitation, running into thousands of euros per patient.

The ISMORE project was developed out in collaboration with the University of Tübingen, UC Berkeley, California, l’Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), the Basque Country Healthcare System, the University of the Basque Country, Donostia University Hospital, Cruces University Hospital, Biodonostia Health Research Institute and SCReN.

EARTO Innovation Award

EARTO, the European Association of Research and Technology Organisations, was founded in 1999 and currently encompasses more than 350 RTOs in more than 20 countries.

EARTO represents 150,000 highly qualified researchers, who manage a wide innovation infrastructure. It has been holding its Innovation Awards since 2009, rewarding the best innovations from its members and highlighting its role in a modern, innovation-oriented European economy.

This year's winner of the Impact Expected category was Finnish-based VTT, for its project Eggs without Chickens; third prize went to Swedish-based RISE for its Super Filaments project.

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