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2007-07-19 News Release
BASF plastics ensuring
a safe gait
BASF transparent ABS plastics Terlux is the optimum material of choice
for the new neurostimulator rehabilitation aid ActiGait for stroke patients.
For its new product ActiGait***, a highly advanced implanted device to
correct drop foot in individuals after a stroke, employed in rehabilitation
medicine, the manufacturer Otto Bock Healthcare put its trust in the plastics
Terlux* 2802 HD with its BASF service package tailored to the needs of
medical technology. The neurostimulator ActiGait gives people with ambulatory
difficulties, as often occur after a stroke, a substantial improvement
in their walking ability. The company used Terlux 2802 HD, a transparent
ABS plastics from BASF (MABS) for the housing and the internal parts of
the externally worn control unit. HD stands for Health Care and Diagnostics.This
plastics is sterilisable, resistant to chemicals and it is part of the
PlasticsPlus** range of the Styrenic Plastics Division.
Neurodan, international research network and part of Otto Bock Health
Care, together with their supplier of plastics parts – SP Medical
– were looking for the optimum material for ActiGait. “It
was primarily because of the service package offered by BASF in support
of the use of Terlux HD in medical applications that we decided to use
these plastics“, says Jan Guldberg, product manager at SP Medical.
Basic building blocks of the service package are the intention not to
change the formulation, product purity and various certificates (e.g.
ISO 10993, USP Class VI). In the event of the formulation being modified
– which could become necessary for instance due to a change in the
law – BASF as raw materials producer will inform customers at least
36 months in advance. Thus the processor has the guarantee that the expenditure
on testing and approvals needed for medical products will repay itself
over the long term.
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New rehabilitation aid ActiGait
made of BASF plastics for stroke patients. Click
Here for High resolution image. photo: BASF |
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Reliable walking ability after strokes
After a stroke the person affected often finds that his ability to raise
the foot through the ankle joint is restricted so that the tip of the
foot is dragged over the ground. ActiGait is based on an implanted multi
channel stimulator, which activates the foot lift by stimulating the common
peroneal nerve above the knee. The stimulation activates the lower leg
muscles (dorsiflexors) which lift the foot. ActiGait allows these patients
to raise the front of the foot and hence enables them to walk safely.
The neurostimulator activates functioning nerve paths which the brain
can no longer control and reactivates the paralyzed muscle by electrically
en-coded movement information. A small electronic chip under the skin
of the upper thigh sends out a movement pulse. At the level of the hollow
of the knee a cable leads to the nerve controlling the muscle and is connected
to it via an electrode. The muscle receives the pulse commanding it to
contract and lifts the foot. The external control unit, which is made
of Terlux 2802 HD, supplies the chip with energy and it is worn on a belt.
A pressure sensor fastened under the foot controls the time intervals
of stimulation while the patient is walking.
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Control unit and heel switch
of ActiGait made of Terlux 2802 HD. Click
Here for High resolution image. photo: BASF |
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Otto Bock Healthcare and Neurodan
ActiGait was developed by Neurodan. Since 2005 Neurodan based in Aalborg
in Denmark has belonged to Otto Bock Healthcare, Duderstadt, Germany,
a globally active medical technology company.
Neurodan A/S is a company founded by world-leading scientists in the field
of motor nerve stimulation and sensory nerve recording. Neurodan has strong
academic affiliations with Center for Sensory-Motor Interaction, Department
of health Science and Technology at Aalborg University.
PlasticsPlus and Terlux 2802 HD
Terlux 2802 HD with its special service package is a member of the PlasticsPlus
product family. Under the general heading of PlasticsPlus BASF has put
together a range of plastics specialties comprising high-performance styrenic
plastics, biodegradable materials and foams. Wherever special requirements
have to be met the PlasticsPlus experts and plastics products offer an
extraordinary degree of diversity, reliability, partnership and innovative
solutions.
* Terlux is a registered trademark of BASF.
** PlasticsPlus is an applied trademark of BASF.
*** ActiGait is a registered trademark of Otto Bock Healthcare developed
by Neurodan.
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