(Press-News.org) An innovative backpack, incorporating aerospace technology, shows promise as a balance aid for patients with the movement disorder ataxia. Research conducted by Radboud university medical center, in collaboration with Delft University of Technology (TU Delft) and Erasmus MC, reveals that the backpack helps individuals with ataxia stand and walk more steadily, reducing their reliance on mobility aids like walkers.
Ataxia is a neurological condition in which the cerebellum, the part of the brain responsible for coordination, functions improperly. This leads to issues with balance and coordination, increasing the risk of falls. Dr. Jorik Nonnekes, rehabilitation specialist and lead researcher at Radboudumc, explains: 'Some people with ataxia, often young individuals, depend on a walker. These devices can be heavy and cumbersome, and many patients find them stigmatizing.'
Space-age technology
The backpack, known as the Gyropack, uses gyroscopic technology similar to that used in space stations or large satellites to maintain orientation in space. The backpack has been in development in Vallery’s group at TU Delft and Erasmus MC for over a decade. 'When I learned about it, I immediately saw its potential for helping people with ataxia,' says Nonnekes. Working closely with the TU Delft team, the backpack was optimized for medical use. It contains spinning wheels that generate resistance to rotations of the wearer’s torso, resulting in improved posture and balance.
Balance exercises
The study involved fourteen patients with moderate to advanced ataxia. Participants performed balance and walking exercises under three conditions: without the backpack, with the backpack fully operational, and with the gyroscopes rotating but not generating any useful effect. The last condition was a sham condition that was indistinguishable in sound and vibrations from active support. Even without active gyroscopes, the backpack provided noticeable benefits—likely due to its current weight of around six kilograms, which helps stabilize the upper body. However, the most significant improvements were observed when the gyroscopes were active. 'Patients were visibly more stable and could, for example, walk in a straight line much more effectively,' Nonnekes notes.
Looking ahead
The research team aims to further develop the backpack, focusing on user-friendliness. Ideally, the device will become lighter and quieter. 'It’s not yet suitable for everyday use,' says Nonnekes, 'but in the future, it could help people with ataxia participate more freely in daily life, like attending social events without needing a walker, which many find bulky and inconvenient. This could greatly enhance their mobility and overall quality of life.'
END
Innovative backpack enhances stability for people with ataxia
Aerospace technology offers new hope for movement disorders
2025-08-27
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Mapping the heart of volcanoes when they wake up
2025-08-27
Volcanic eruptions can have dramatic consequences. But how can we anticipate this phenomenon, which unfolds up to tens of kilometres beneath the surface? A team from the University of Geneva (UNIGE), in collaboration with the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV) in Italy, has successfully recreated a 3D model of the interior of the Vulcano volcano, located in northern Sicily. This image, produced with unprecedented accuracy, was obtained by combining nodal seismic networks and artificial intelligence. Published in Nature Communications, these results represent a major breakthrough ...
Cosmic butterfly reveals clues to Earth's creation
2025-08-27
Clues about how worlds like Earth may have formed have been found buried at the heart of a spectacular 'cosmic butterfly'.
With the help of the James Webb Space Telescope, researchers say they have made a big leap forward in our understanding of how the raw material of rocky planets comes together.
This cosmic dust – tiny particles of minerals and organic material which include ingredients linked to the origins of life – was studied at the core of the Butterfly Nebula, NGC 6302, which is located about ...
Phone snubbing more damaging to insecure partners, study finds
2025-08-27
Researchers from the University of Southampton have found that people with emotional insecurities are more affected than others when their partners choose their phone over them.
The researchers have conducted a study into ‘phubbing’ – a mashup of ‘phone’ and ‘snubbing’ used to describe the all too familiar scenario where the person you are talking to shuns you to look at their phone.
The team wanted to find out how people with different ways of thinking and feeling about their relationship would respond to being ‘phubbed’. The results have been published in the Journal of Personality.
Dr Claire Hart, ...
Treating heart failure patients with anti-obesity medication reduces greenhouse gas emissions and improves clinical outcomes
2025-08-27
Key takeaways
New research shows that treatment of heart failure patients with a type of anti-obesity medication reduces the environmental footprint of healthcare, as well as improving clinical outcomes.
People being treated for heart failure with GLP-1 receptor antagonists used 0.25 kg CO₂-equivalent less per person annually, compared to patients with heart failure taking a placebo. When this saving is scaled to the millions of people eligible for the treatment, the findings suggest that 2 ...
Cardiac arrest in space: New research shows that automatic chest compressions are more effective for CPR when both rescuer and patient are floating in microgravity
2025-08-27
Key take-aways
New research has found that a type of automatic chest compression is more effective to carry out CPR in space than the ‘handstand method’ that is currently recommended in emergency protocols for spaceflight. Treating cardiac arrest during spaceflight is challenging because both the rescuer and the patient are floating due to microgravity, which makes doing chest compressions challenging.
The research was conducted in a ‘flying laboratory’ in a modified A310 aircraft at the CNES (French ...
Older age and low fitness levels are associated with heartbeat abnormalities that increase future cardiovascular risk
2025-08-27
Key take-aways
New research finds that low fitness levels and older age are strong and independent risk factors for heartbeat irregularities, or arrhythmias*, in healthy adults. These arrhythmias were previously thought to be harmless, but are now considered to be an indicator of future cardiovascular risk (1,2)
The results support the introduction of age-based arrhythmia screening in over 50s, to allow for early intervention before symptoms arise to alter the trajectory of disease
There was a particularly strong association between lower aerobic fitness and risk of frequent and complex atrial arrythmias, ...
‘Built for cutting flesh, not resisting acidity’: sharks may be losing deadly teeth to ocean acidification
2025-08-27
Sharks can famously replace their teeth, with new ones always growing as they’re using up the current set. As sharks rely on their teeth to catch prey, this is vital to the survival of one of the oceans’ top predators.
But the ability to regrow teeth might not be enough to ensure they can withstand the pressures of a warming world where oceans are getting more acidic, new research has found. Researchers in Germany examined sharks’ teeth under different ocean acidification scenarios and showed that more acidic oceans lead to more brittle and weaker teeth.
“Shark teeth, despite being composed of highly mineralized phosphates, are still vulnerable to corrosion under ...
Study reveals beneficial effects of diet and exercise on alcohol-related adverse liver health
2025-08-27
Amsterdam, August 27, 2025 – A novel study investigating how physical activity and diet quality interact with different levels and patterns of alcohol consumption shows that healthy eating and increased levels of physical activity significantly lower the risk of alcohol-attributable liver-related mortality. The findings from this comprehensive new study in the Journal of Hepatology, published by Elsevier, use data from a large multi-ethnic US cohort and highlight the importance of considering other lifestyle behaviors when estimating the risk of death from alcohol-related liver disease at a population level.
In the US, more than half (53%) of adults over 18 years of age regularly ...
Making the weight in four years
2025-08-27
Kyoto, Japan -- Periodical cicadas have one of the strangest life cycles in the animal kingdom. The 17-year cicadas spend 99.5% of their lives underground in an undeveloped nymph state, which is the longest strictly regulated juvenile period among insects.
Then in the spring of their 17th year, they simultaneously emerge and the males scream above ground for their four to six week-long adult life. Exactly how these insects are able to control when they mature and emerge has remained a mystery.
The long life cycle of periodical cicadas makes rearing nymphs for study extremely difficult. Recently, however, a collaborative team of researchers from both Japan and the ...
AI review unveils new strategies for fixing missing traffic data in smart cities
2025-08-27
A new review published in Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous Systems(AIAS) highlights how artificial intelligence can tackle the pervasive problem of missing traffic data in intelligent transportation systems. The study categorizes and compares leading data imputation methods, offering a clear roadmap for researchers and city planners to improve traffic management and smart city operations.
As cities worldwide deploy more sensors and intelligent systems to manage traffic, a hidden problem is undermining their efforts: missing data. Sensor failures, communication dropouts, and harsh environmental conditions often lead to ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Engineers develop solid lubricant to replace toxic materials in farming
Repurposing gemstone polishing waste to create smart cement
Patient-physician messaging by race, ethnicity, insurance type, and preferred language
Unrecognized motor difficulties and developmental coordination disorder in preschool children
Background genetic variants influence clinical features in complex disorders
Smarter battery tech knows whether your EV will make it home
Overactive microRNAs block fat cell development in progeria
Crosswalk confusion: MA drivers flummoxed by pedestrian hybrid beacons, find UMass Amherst researchers
Study shows heart disease mortality disproportionately burdens low-income communities in California
Intracardiac echocardiography recognized as ‘transformative’ imaging modality in new SCAI position statement
Study finds ‘man’s best friend’ slows cellular aging in female veterans
To get representative health data, researchers hand out fitbits
Hiring in high-growth firms: new study explores the timing of organizational changes
Boosting work engagement through a simple smartphone diary
Climate change may create ‘ecological trap’ for species who can’t adapt
Scientists create ChatGPT-like AI model for neuroscience to build one of the most detailed mouse brain maps to date
AI and omics unlock personalized drugs and RNA therapies for heart disease
2023 ocean heatwave ‘unprecedented but not unexpected’
Johns Hopkins researchers develop AI to predict risk of US car crashes
New drug combination offers hope for men with advanced prostate cancer
New discovery finds gene converts insulin-producing cells into blood-sugar boosters
Powerful and precise multi-color lasers now fit on a single chip
Scientists agree chemicals can affect behavior, but industry workers more reluctant about safety testing
DNA nanospring measures cellular motor power
Elsevier Foundation and RIKEN launch “Envisioning Futures” report: paving the way for gender equity and women’s leadership in Japanese research
Researchers discover enlarged areas of the spinal cord in fish, previously found only in four-limbed vertebrates
Bipolar disorder heterogeneity decoded: transforming global psychiatric treatment approaches
Catching Alport syndrome through universal age-3 urine screening
Instructions help you remember something better than emotions or a good night’s sleep
Solar energy is now the world’s cheapest source of power, a Surrey study finds
[Press-News.org] Innovative backpack enhances stability for people with ataxiaAerospace technology offers new hope for movement disorders