Road to recovery: Groundbreaking A.I. is helping injured Georgia truck driver get back in the seat
ATLANTA, GA – JULY 26, 2023 – BioMech Lab uses state-of-the-art tech. to empower both doctors and patients.
After suffering a bad fall, longtime truck driver and Georgia resident Robert Stahl found himself facing a post-concussion syndrome diagnosis.
He couldn’t talk and could barely walk at the time, but that’s all changed now. Thanks to a potentially groundbreaking state-of-the-art medical technology that utilizes artificial intelligence, Stahl is well on the road to recovery.
“I’m getting better,” Stahl told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “A little better at a time.”
Experts estimate that anywhere from 1.6 million to 4 million people suffer concussions in the U.S. each year, leading to anywhere from 240,000 to 600,000 cases of post-concussion syndrome — a cacophony of concussion symptoms ranging from movement impairment to emotional imbalances that can sometimes last years.
Tracking progress with A.I.
Originally from Chicago, Stahl moved to Georgia in 2009. For the past 35 years, he’s been driving trucks and instructing new up-and-coming drivers. But after being diagnosed with post-concussion syndrome, Stahl was no longer able to work — or do much of anything. That’s when he decided to visit Dr. Larry Empting, who oversees Atlanta’s Independent Neurodiagnostic Clinic.
“When I first started seeing Dr. Empting, I was in terrible shape,” Stahl said. “I was actually declining, rapidly, all the time. My ability to carry on a conversation, and even to walk, was terrible. My wife had to hold onto me while I walked. I bounced back and forth down the hallway like a pinball. And if you had seen me several months ago, you wouldn’t know I was the same person. I couldn’t talk several months ago. I wouldn’t be able to talk to you like I am now.”
In partnership with the Independent Neurodiagnostic Clinic, BioMech Lab — a team of scientists in biophysics, anatomy, genetics, neurophysiology, biomechanics, mathematics, materials sciences, fabrication, electrical engineering and computer science — has been putting their state-of-the-art clinical motion analytics technology to work in what has become a powerful tool for both doctors and patients. Stahl said it’s given him his life back.
“We started working with BioMech, and it’s really interesting because I get to see my progress on the screen,” Stahl said. “As a patient, it’s a help psychologically because you can actually look at the screen and say, ‘yeah, I’m getting better.’ It’s telling me that right here on the screen. I can see it.”
The technology, which utilizes artificial intelligence and machine learning, can be used in the comfort of the patient’s home with no supervision. It only requires a sensor and an iPad equipped with the technology’s app. READ MORE>