Method And System For Providing Proprioceptive Feedback And Functionality Mitigating Limb Pathology

Abstract

Proprioceptive feedback is provided in a residual limb of a person that includes forming a linkage between a pair of agonist and antagonist muscles, forming a sliding surface over which the agonist and antagonist muscles slide. The sliding surface can include a synovial sleeve, a bridge formed between the distal ends of bones, or a fixture that is osseointegrated into the bone. The invention also includes a system for transdermal electrical communication in a person that includes a percutaneous access device, a sensory device that communicates signals between a muscle and the percutaneous device, and a stimulation device in communication with the percutaneous access device. In another embodiment, a closed-loop functional stimulation system restores lost functionality to a person that suffers from impairment of a neurological control system or at least partial loss of a limb.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of providing proprioceptive feedback in a residual limb of a subject, comprising the steps of:
 a) forming a sliding surface at a residual limb of a subject; and   b) forming a linkage between a pair of agonist and antagonist muscles that traverses the sliding surface, whereby contraction of one of the muscles of the pair causes elongation of the other of the pair, thereby providing proprioceptive feedback to the subject.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the sliding surface is formed at a distal end of a bone of the residual limb. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , wherein the sliding surface is transverse to a plane in which major longitudinal axes of the linked pair of agonist and antagonist muscles of the residual limb lie. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the sliding surface is a synovial sleeve attached to a bone of the residual limb. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein the synovial sleeve is at a side portion of the bone. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein the synovial sleeve is at the distal end of the bone. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein a plurality of sliding surfaces are formed, and wherein a plurality of pairs of agonist and antagonist muscles are linked, whereby each sliding surface supports at least one pair of muscles. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the sliding surface is a groove at the distal end of a bone of the residual limb. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 8 , wherein the bone is at least a portion of at least one member of the group consisting of a tibia, a fibula, a femur, a humerus, a radius, and an ulna. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 8 , further including the step of forming an artificial retinaculum at the sliding surface that stabilizes the linkage of the pair of muscles at the groove. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the artificial retinaculum is formed of a synthetic material. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 10 , wherein the artificial retinaculum is formed of at least one tissue selected from the group consisting of a tendon and a ligament. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 8 , further including the step of wrapping the distal end of the bone with a material to secure the linkage of the muscle pair at the distal end of the bone while allowing sliding of the linkage across the sliding surface. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 13 , further including at least one step selected from the group consisting of forming a groove at the distal end of the bone to thereby form the sliding surface, and forming an artificial retinaculum at the sliding surface that stabilizes the pair of muscles at the groove. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the wrapping material is formed of a synthetic material. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the synthetic material includes at least one member of the group consisting of titanium, silicone, plastic, ceramic, and chromium cobalt. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the bone is at least a portion of a tibia and a fibula, and wherein the sliding surface is formed by constructing a tibia-fibula bridge between distal ends of the tibia and the fibula, whereby the tibia-fibula bridge defines the sliding surface. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the bridge is an osseous bridge. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the bridge is a tendonous bridge. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the sliding surface supports a plurality of linkages between agonist and antagonist muscles. 
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the sliding surface is defined by a tendonous ring fixed to the distal end of the residual limb. 
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein the distal end of the residual limb to which the tendonous ring is attached is a distal end of a bone. 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the agonist and antagonist muscles are linked by at least one member of the group consisting of muscle tissue, a tendon, and a synthetic material.