IMPILO-AI: Intelligent Monitoring of Prosthesis conditions In LOwer limb amputees - Advancing Innovation

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A prosthetic leg is a tremendous aid to people living with lower limb loss, but wearing it every day is not without its problems. Heat, moisture and friction can irritate the leg's sensitive skin, causing irritation and soreness. Often, this leads to inflammation and open wounds which are extremely difficult to heal and which may become infected. Many people simply give up using their prosthesis, often without informing their doctor. People with diabetes are more at risk, because they often have poor circulation, have less feeling in their leg, and are less able to fight infection.Even today, the recommended way of avoiding skin problems is regular inspection, both at home and during visits to the clinic. Unfortunately, the early stages of a problem are not always easy to spot, especially for people with poor mobility and other health challenges. Clinical visits usually don't happen very often, so by the time an ulcer is seen it is too late to treat easily. Typically it will take over six months to heal, and may require hospital admission for treatment.IMPILO is a new monitoring system which continuously monitors the temperature and humidity around the leg when the user is wearing the prosthesis, and combines this information with the wearer's activity and mobility. It communicates its information --- securely and anonymously --- via an app on a mobile phone to the cloud, where it is analysed and then passed back to the users or their doctors. If it looks like something is wrong, or even if it may go wrong, it will let them know.IMPILO was developed in an earlier project funded by Innovate UK and has completed its first trial with a small group in Belfast. This trial successfully showed that the system worked as expected, but did not look at how it can be used to prevent problems. With this new project, IMPILO will become a fully certified digital health solution, using machine learning to supply information to help the individuals, and their clinical support, make better decisions about their limb health and care. When this has been achieved, IMPILO will move forward into a second phase of clinical trials, with a larger number of people, throughout the UK. This trial will study the benefits of using the information provided by IMPILO to determine if a problem is likely to occur, and if it can be avoided.