Wheelchair

Muscular Dystrophy Association Applauds Landmark Proposal on Accessible Air Travel at The White House

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, February 29, 2024

Donald S. Wood, PhD, President and CEO of the Muscular Dystrophy Association said, “I am immensely proud of the tireless efforts of MDA’s staff and advocates.

Key Points: 
  • Donald S. Wood, PhD, President and CEO of the Muscular Dystrophy Association said, “I am immensely proud of the tireless efforts of MDA’s staff and advocates.
  • This monumental proposal on accessible air travel reaffirms our commitment to serving families and we stand in solidarity with the disability community, championing inclusivity and accessibility in every facet of life.
  • This proposal represents a transformative stride towards empowering individuals to travel without the burden of fear, injury, or dehumanization."
  • Stay informed and engaged as we navigate the path towards a more accessible and inclusive world.

Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals Initiates Phase 1/2a Study of ARO-DM1 for Treatment of Type 1 Myotonic Dystrophy

Retrieved on: 
Friday, March 8, 2024

Patients with DM1 have muscle weakness and wasting, myotonia, cataracts, and often develop cardiac conduction abnormalities.

Key Points: 
  • Patients with DM1 have muscle weakness and wasting, myotonia, cataracts, and often develop cardiac conduction abnormalities.
  • Pathogenesis of DM1 is driven by an expanded CUG trinucleotide repeat in the 3’-untranslated region of DMPK transcripts.
  • These abnormal transcripts cause mis-regulated splicing, known as spliceopathy, for certain messenger RNAs which are directly linked to the clinical manifestations of DM1.
  • Presentation materials may be accessed on the Events and Presentations page under the Investors section of the Arrowhead website.

NAQI Logix -- a Breakthrough in Human-Machine Interface Without Brain Implants -- is Accepted into the Innovative Solutions Canada Program

Retrieved on: 
Friday, March 8, 2024

Recently selected by TIME as one of the best inventions of 2023, NAQI turns facial gestures and movements into powerful digital commands.

Key Points: 
  • Recently selected by TIME as one of the best inventions of 2023, NAQI turns facial gestures and movements into powerful digital commands.
  • "Innovative Solutions Canada is a program that assists companies like ours to bring exciting new technologies to the world.
  • The Accessible Canada Act, enacted by the Government of Canada, aims to achieve a barrier-free Canada by 2040.
  • NAQI Logix holds 26 patents worldwide, further solidifying its position as a pioneering force in the tech industry.

Paralyzed Veterans of America issues statement following the release of proposed changes, requested by PVA, that would improve air travel for wheelchair users

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, February 29, 2024

"Despite continued setbacks and delays, improving access to air travel for passengers with disabilities remains one of PVA's top priorities.

Key Points: 
  • "Despite continued setbacks and delays, improving access to air travel for passengers with disabilities remains one of PVA's top priorities.
  • Today's proposed changes by the Department of Transportation include several vital steps that would dramatically improve the air travel experience for people with disabilities.
  • We now urge wheelchair and scooter users to comment on this Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to ensure their voices are heard.
  • To join PVAction Force and encourage Congress to pass the final version of the FAA Reauthorization Act, as well as learn about safe, accessible air travel visit PVA.org/AirTravel .

VOCIC Presents its Latest Products at Arab Health 2024 in Dubai

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, February 21, 2024

VOCIC product roadmap also includes other auxiliary items such as wheelchairs, floor lifts, chair lifts, electric patient lifts and more.

Key Points: 
  • VOCIC product roadmap also includes other auxiliary items such as wheelchairs, floor lifts, chair lifts, electric patient lifts and more.
  • With its commitment to premier products and exceptional support, VOCIC aims to assist increasing number of individuals in reclaiming mobility effortlessly.
  • Over the past 10 years, VOCIC transitioned from being a supplier of nursing beds to becoming a manufacturer of comprehensive home rehab products.
  • Here're actions we have been taking to make VOCIC different:
    Most VOCIC products proudly carry FDA certification, which is typically a symbol of products meeting high quality and safety standards.

Several companies are testing brain implants – why is there so much attention swirling around Neuralink? Two professors unpack the ethical issues

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, February 14, 2024

Academic and commercial groups are testing “brain-computer interface” devices to enable people with disabilities to function more independently.

Key Points: 
  • Academic and commercial groups are testing “brain-computer interface” devices to enable people with disabilities to function more independently.
  • In January 2024, Musk announced that Neuralink implanted its first chip in a human subject’s brain.

How does a brain chip work?

  • Subjects in the company’s PRIME study – short for Precise Robotically Implanted Brain-Computer Interface – undergo surgery to place the device in a part of the brain that controls movement.
  • The chip records and processes the brain’s electrical activity, then transmits this data to an external device, such as a phone or computer.

A few companies are testing BCIs. What’s different about Neuralink?


Noninvasive devices positioned on the outside of a person’s head have been used in clinical trials for a long time, but they have not received approval from the Food and Drug Administration for commercial development.
There are other brain-computer devices, like Neuralink’s, that are fully implanted and wireless. However, the N1 implant combines more technologies in a single device: It can target individual neurons, record from thousands of sites in the brain and recharge its small battery wirelessly. These are important advances that could produce better outcomes.

Why is Neuralink drawing criticism?

  • Musk announced the company’s first human trial on his social media platform, X – formerly Twitter – in January 2024.
  • Neuralink did not register at ClinicalTrials.gov, as is customary, and required by some academic journals.
  • Neuralink, on the other hand, embodies a private equity model, which is becoming more common in science.
  • However, the secretary did note an “adverse surgical event” in 2019 that Neuralink had self-reported.
  • In a separate incident also reported by Reuters, the Department of Transportation fined Neuralink for violating rules about transporting hazardous materials, including a flammable liquid.

What other ethical issues does Neuralink’s trial raise?

  • In particular, it helps people recover a sense of their own agency or autonomy – one of the key tenets of medical ethics.
  • With BCIs, scientists and ethicists are particularly concerned about the potential for identity theft, password hacking and blackmail.
  • Given how the devices access users’ thoughts, there is also the possibility that their autonomy could be manipulated by third parties.

What’s next?

  • Musk has said his ultimate goal for BCIs, however, is to help humanity – including healthy people – “keep pace” with artificial intelligence.
  • Some types of supercharged brain-computer synthesis could exacerbate social inequalities if only wealthy citizens have access to enhancements.
  • For patients whose access to a device is tied to a research study, the prospect of losing access after the study ends can be devastating.


The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

UT Health San Antonio School of Dentistry opens dental clinic for special-needs children, adults

Retrieved on: 
Friday, February 9, 2024

SAN ANTONIO, Feb. 9, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The UT Health San Antonio School of Dentistry has opened a special-care dental clinic, the first of its kind in an academic setting in South Texas that will serve people of all ages with intellectual, developmental, cognitive or physical disabilities.

Key Points: 
  • SAN ANTONIO, Feb. 9, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The UT Health San Antonio School of Dentistry has opened a special-care dental clinic, the first of its kind in an academic setting in South Texas that will serve people of all ages with intellectual, developmental, cognitive or physical disabilities.
  • "Dental education institutions are the vital link in building a clinician base that will deliver services to this significantly underserved population," said Peter M. Loomer, DDS, PhD, MBA, dean of the UT Health San Antonio School of Dentistry.
  • "We provide a full range of preventive, routine and comprehensive dental care for all ages and dental needs," said Micaela Gibbs, DDS, MHA, clinical associate professor and chief dental officer of the UT Health San Antonio School of Dentistry.
  • The UT Health San Antonio School of Dentistry offers 18 degrees and programs in both dentistry and dental hygiene, world-renown faculty educators, a diverse student population, state-of-the-art clinical facilities and a distinguished research enterprise.

Vilcek Foundation honors Immigrant Designers with $250,000 in Prizes

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, February 6, 2024

NEW YORK, Feb. 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Vilcek Foundation announces the recipients of the 2024 Vilcek Foundation Prizes in Design. Totaling $250,000 in awards, the prizes celebrate immigrant professionals in graphic design, industrial design and product design whose work has had a profound impact in their specific field of work, as well as on design and design thinking and practice more broadly in the United States. The Vilcek Foundation Prizes in Design are awarded as part of the Vilcek Foundation's prizes in the arts and humanities, awarded annually as part of the Vilcek Foundation Prizes program to build awareness of the vital role immigration plays in enriching intellectual and cultural life in the United States.

Key Points: 
  • NEW YORK, Feb. 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Vilcek Foundation announces the recipients of the 2024 Vilcek Foundation Prizes in Design .
  • The Vilcek Foundation Prizes in Design are awarded as part of the Vilcek Foundation's prizes in the arts and humanities, awarded annually as part of the Vilcek Foundation Prizes program to build awareness of the vital role immigration plays in enriching intellectual and cultural life in the United States.
  • "Design enables us to interact with the world with elegance and artistry," says Vilcek Foundation Vice Chair and Cofounder Marica Vilcek.
  • The Vilcek Foundation Prizes comprise four individual awards: The Vilcek Prize in Design—a $100,000 award—and three $50,000 Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise in Design.

Vilcek Foundation Awards $500,000 in Prizes to Immigrant Scientists and Designers

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, February 6, 2024

NEW YORK, Feb. 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Vilcek Foundation announces the recipients of the 2024 Vilcek Foundation Prizes. Comprising a total of $500,000 in awards, the prizes align with the foundation's mission and vision: To celebrate immigrant professionals in biomedical science and in the arts and humanities, and to recognize immigrant professionals' contributions to intellectual and cultural life in the United States.

Key Points: 
  • NEW YORK, Feb. 6, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Vilcek Foundation announces the recipients of the 2024 Vilcek Foundation Prizes .
  • Vilcek Foundation awards $500,000 in prizes to immigrant professionals in Biomedical Science and Design.
  • In 2024, four prizes are awarded each in Biomedical Science and in Design: one $100,000 Vilcek Prize, and three $50,000 Vilcek Prizes for Creative Promise.
  • "The United States' leadership in biomedical science and research is in no small part due to the contributions of immigrant scientists," says Jan Vilcek, Chairman and CEO of the Vilcek Foundation.

Muscular Dystrophy Association Announces Seven Recipient Organizations of Advocacy Collaboration Grants

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, February 1, 2024

“Muscular Dystrophy Association is proud to announce the recipients of the MDA Advocacy Collaboration Grants.

Key Points: 
  • “Muscular Dystrophy Association is proud to announce the recipients of the MDA Advocacy Collaboration Grants.
  • “The Child Neurology Foundation is thrilled to be a recipient of Muscular Dystrophy Association’s Advocacy Collaboration Grants program to support the development of a comprehensive Needs Assessment Survey,” said Katie Hentges, Director of Programs.
  • “The Muscular Dystrophy Association Advocacy Collaboration Grant will enable Cure CMD to continue its legislative advocacy work and provide skills training, resources, and advocacy opportunities for the CMD community,” said Lani Knutson, Cure CMD Advocacy Team Lead.
  • Other innovative programs, campaigns, or initiatives that can measurably impact one or more of MDA and the collaborating organizations’ common advocacy goals.