Stroke survivor Dave thanks Southampton Uni’s e-textiles team for ‘life-changing’ rehabilitation glove

Eight years ago, 54-year-old Dave Lea from Chandler’s Ford suffered a major stroke which left him paralysed on his right-hand side.

But an invention from the team at the University of Southampton’s Winchester School of Art could give Dave and countless others a new lease of life.

Headed up by Kai Yang, Professor of E-textiles in Healthcare, the team has designed an electronic glove to help support stroke survivors in their rehabilitation.

The sleeve contains a number of electrodes which send electronic impulses to stimulate nerves and muscles in the paralysed arm and produce artificial moving, allowing users to regain muscle strength and function.

“I wanted to develop something easy for stroke survivors to use at home”, Professor Yang explained.

“People who’ve suffered a stroke get fatigued easily, so engaging in long rehabilitation sessions is very challenging.

“This glove enables them to work on their rehab in small blocks of time when it suits them.

“With stroke rehabilitation, the more you practice movement, the more you regain muscle strength and mobility.”

Professor Yang connected with Dave through her work with Different Strokes Southampton, a charity run by and for stroke survivors.

The e-textiles team collaborated with Dave and Ranj Parmar, the charity’s Group Coordinator, throughout the development process.

“It’s life changing,” said Dave.

“It means I can move my hand – something I’ve been unable to do for eight years.”

His wife Sarah added: “It was really emotional seeing Dave test run the glove for the first time.

“It’s incredible. It really could change the lives of stroke survivors.”

The next step for Professor Yang is to work with more stroke survivors, conducting a home usability test which will see them using the glove multiple times a day.

Then comes regulatory approval and working with a manufacturer to scale up production.

“We’re delighted with the prototype”, she added.

“We’d like to see this become a product that’s available to all stroke survivors, to help improve their recovery and their quality of life.”

• southampton.ac.uk

To get the best of Hampshire Biz News straight to your inbox every week, sign up for our newsletter!