The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a medical device that functions as an external skeleton, allowing people with spinal cord injuries to stand and walk.
As recently reported in the Wall Street Journal, the new device, named the Indego, is a wearable robotic skeleton that supports the legs of people who have experienced spinal cord injuries, or who suffer from multiple sclerosis or other types of lower-body paralysis. The device was developed by Parker Hannifin Corporation and could potentially benefit an estimated 1.7 million people in the U.S., including approximately 270,000 with spinal cord injuries.
The Indego device weighs about 26 pounds, and will cost about $80,000. At this point, it is uncertain whether medical insurance providers will cover some or all of the cost of the device.
Read the Wall Street Journal article about the Indego robotic skeleton.
