The HandTutor, ArmTutor, LegTutor and 3DTuTor Aids Victims of Brain Injury

Iraq veteran Shane Hannaford runs on Riverside Drive at the 31st Street pedestrian bridge in Tulsa last week. JAMES GIBBARD / Tulsa World

By MANNY GAMALLO & SHANNON MUCHMORE World Staff Writers
Published: 9/1/2011 2:22 AM
Last Modified: 9/1/2011 7:39 AM

He was in shock from the improvised explosive device hidden in a rotting donkey carcass. He didn’t feel much pain, and he certainly didn’t feel the injury in his brain.
Home from Iraq months later, with shrapnel still embedded in his hand and using a cane as his leg began to heal, Hannaford got lost driving in Tulsa, where he was raised. He also noticed trouble with his short-term memory, and he would sometimes cry for no reason.
Hannaford had suffered a traumatic brain injury, one of the signature conditions during the war on terror.
More than 35,000 U.S service members have been wounded in action during Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan, according to the U.S. Department of Defense, although that number is often called far too low.
Improved treatment options and the type of artillery being used in these conflicts has caused more soldiers to return home with missing limbs, a traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder.
Hannaford’s injuries prevented him from going back to Iraq as a Marine. He wasn’t interested in a desk job. He instead worked for a contractor, providing security for the Army Corps of Engineers as it destroyed caches of Iraqi weapons.
“I felt a lot of satisfaction going back over there,” he said. “I got to prevent (what happened to me) happening to other Marines.”
Now, Hannaford is a Realtor in Tulsa. He walks without assistance but has to take copious notes during business dealings or he’ll forget the beginning of a conversation before it ends. He sets alarms on his phone and puts as much information as he can into his iPad. His time management is off and he often has trouble focusing.
“You just have to suck it up and learn how to compensate for it,” he said.
It’s more difficult with personal relationships, where taking notes is awkward at best. His brain injury played a large role in his divorce and all relationships with family and friends are difficult, he said.
A blast injury that causes traumatic brain injury creates pressure inside the skull, adversely affecting the brain in a variety of ways. Symptoms include headaches, irritability, depression, memory loss, anxiety and trouble sleeping. It can also affect parts of the brain that deal with empathy and social behaviors, said Elana Newman, McFarland professor of psychology at the University of Tulsa.
Traumatic brain injury is still not fully understood. Symptoms are often treated with cognitive rehabilitation and life skills and vocational training, she said.
“We’re seeing it a lot and we’re learning how to deal with it.”

When brain injury results in joint movement difficulies the HandTutor, ArmTutor, LegTutor and 3DTutor have been effective in improving coordination and performance. The newly created devices consist of challenging and motivating games that allow the patient to practice isolated or and/or interjoint coordination exercises. Powerful and dedicated software gives the therapist objective and quantitative information on the patient’s functional impairment. A customized program can be designed to match the patient’s ability. Installed in leading U.S. and foreign hospitals and clinics the TuTors are also available for home use through telerehabilitation and can be used by children as well as adults.