Hand edema, which is swelling of the fingers due to fluid buildup from injury or disease, is usually treated with a hand massage by a therapist. However, new finger massage gloves could be a cheaper and more accessible alternative.
Developed by a team at Cornell University led by Asst. An experimental device by Professor Cindy (Hsin-Liu) Kao and her PhD student Heather (Jin Hee) Kim incorporates a technology known as KnitDema. The current prototype consists of knitting yarn that wraps around one finger. The thread is woven with a series of thread-like memory alloy springs, each of which surrounds the finger like a ring.
A small hardwired printed circuit board supplies electrical current to each spring, causing it to heat up and contract. When the current stops, the spring cools and returns to its original state.
Therefore, by activating the springs (from top to bottom), you can repeatedly compress from the fingertips to the base. In laboratory simulations, the KnitDema sleeve was able to push water out of the foam model’s finger and up into the attached glass tube.
Cornell University
The duration and intensity of acupressure can be manually adjusted to suit each patient’s requirements. Springs contract at a temperature of 45 ºC (113 ºF). This temperature was comfortable for the volunteers who tried the device. Additionally, the thread itself passively compresses the finger to reduce swelling, even when the spring is not in use.
“Instead of having difficulty booking a visit with a MEM therapist, [manual edema massage]We envision this as something people can take home – adjust as needed. “
Source: Cornell University, Hybrid Body Lab
