Douglas J. Weber, Ph.D.

With epidural electrical stimulation (EES) of the cervical spine, researchers successfully improved arm and hand mobility in two stroke patients who otherwise had no treatment available for their chronic hemiparesis.

Continuous spinal cord stimulation (SCS), provided through two surgically implanted leads, improved strength, speed, and functional movements in the first two patients of this ongoing study, reported Marco Capogrosso, PhD, a biomedical engineer at the University of Pittsburgh, and colleagues.

The two stroke patients attempted movements from day 1 without training. Within 30 days, they were able to fully open and close their fist, lift their arm above their head, and use a fork and knife to cut food for the first time in years, Capogrosso and team noted in Nature Medicineopens in a new tab or window… Continue reading.

A handful of “locked-in” amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients can now work a laptop computer using their brain waves, thanks to an implant lodged in a major vein inside their skull.

The implant — a stent lined with 16 miniscule electrodes — is nestled in a vein located near the motor cortex of completely paralyzed patients, the authors of a new study on the procedure explained.

“This device senses the electrical activity that occurs in the motor cortex when someone thinks about moving their limbs,” said co-researcher Douglas Weber, a professor of mechanical engineering and neuroscience at Carnegie Mellon University, in Pittsburgh… Continue reading.

The body’s circadian rhythms are sophisticated cycles that regulate essential functions that range from sleeping and waking to digestion and hormone production. When the brain’s master clock is disrupted — as with travel — physiological and mental processes bear the burden, causing a person to experience insomnia, gastrointestinal issues, impaired cognitive function and even a weakened immune response. A new research collaboration aims to address this.

Carnegie Mellon University researchers are part of a team working with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to develop a system for regulating the body’s circadian clock. Such a system will support military personnel who frequently travel across multiple time zones and shift workers including first responders, who vacillate between overnight and daytime shifts… Continue reading.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) has announced the induction of Douglas J. Weber, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Bioengineering, University of Pittsburgh, to its College of Fellows.

Election to the AIMBE College of Fellows is among the highest professional distinctions accorded to a medical and biological engineer. The College of Fellows is comprised of the top two percent of medical and biological engineers. College membership honors those who have made outstanding contributions to “engineering and medicine research, practice, or education” and to “the pioneering of new and developing fields of technology, making major advancements in traditional fields of medical and biological engineering, or developing/implementing innovative approaches to bioengineering education.”

Dr. Weber was nominated, reviewed, and elected by peers and members of the College of Fellows for “outstanding contributions to neurorehabilitation engineering, translational neuroscience, and leadership in the field of neural engineering.“