4 Innovative Assistive Products For People With Hand Tremors

Updated on: January 1, 2022


assistive products for people with hand tremors

People with hand tremors find it difficult to perform simple hand tasks. Especially, tasks like drinking, eating, and writing become very challenging and often caused embarrassment in front of others. 

Many health companies are in a process of creating assistive products for people with tremors so that they can enjoy drinking and eating during family gatherings.

Here, we present 4 such products, which are research-based and have actually made it easier for people with tremors to perform hand activities.

Let’s have a look at each of these products and learn how do they work.

1. handSteady Drinking Aid

innovative assistive products for people with hand tremors

This innovative drinking aid is a great help for people with tremors. It helps them to reduce tremor effects while drinking so that they can have their tea or coffee without spilling.  Primarily designed for tremor patients, the cup can also benefit those suffering from arthritis and multiple sclerosis. 

The cup is developed by Chris Peacock, the director of handSteady Ltd. His idea of creating a cup was inspired after witnessing one of his closest family members start having a hand tremor. He realized how tricky was it for his loved ones to hold a normal cup and drink coffee or water. This led him to design a cup that could allow people with tremors to drink with confidence and in complete control. After months of hard work, he finally crafted a cup named handSteady.

The cup has a large, easy-grip handle that is rotatable (rotate 360 degrees). The rotatable feature allows the cup to be at self-level whilst in use, no matter what angle the cup is held at. The slip-lid prevents the liquid from spilling and keeps drinks hotter for a long time while a drinking hole controls the flow of liquid to the user.

Overall, this cup is a valuable gift for people with hand tremors. It allows a comfortable and more dignified drinking experience.

Related post: HandSteady Cup – A New Innovative Drinking Cup For Tremor Patients


2. Gyenno Spoon

This revolutionary spoon from Gyenno does a great job when it comes to eating. It helps a person to lift the food from the plate into the mouth without spilling, thus allowing to eat independently and with more confidence.

The spoon is thoughtfully designed that detect shaking in the hands and remove its effects. It has the ability to reduce the shaking up to 85%. It features an Intelligent high-speed servo control system that provides fast and accurate stabilization at 360 degrees.

The inside of the spoon carries high-performance motor components, a precision transmission structure, and a high-precision sensor. These components work collectively to detect unconscious tremor and stabilize it. This allows the food to stay in the spoon’s bowl during lifting.

The handle of the spoon is crafted in a way that is adapted to general hand use habits, easy to hold and to prevent from slippery. The attachment of the spoon can easily be washed in a dishwasher or with hands by using washing detergent or soap.

The spoon comes with a rechargeable and replaceable battery. Once recharged fully, the spoon can be used for at least 3 meals.

The spoon is pleasant to look and easy to use. It is small and handy and comes with a case that allows you to take it anywhere you go; whether to a restaurant or for a picnic with the family.


3. Cala Trio Wrist Band Therapy

This innovative device has become a very popular non-invasive therapy for essential tremor in recent years. The great thing about this therapy is that it reduces tremor without causing systemic side effects.

Cala Trio device consists of three parts: a charging base station with a magnetic charger, a stimulator, and a replaceable band.  

The device works by producing a gentle stimulation in the nerves of the wrist area. This stimulation is sent to the brain area where it disrupts the tremor network and results in the meaningful reduction of tremor in the target hand. To get the maximal benefit, it is recommended to use the device at least twice a day for a two-week period. 

Numerous studies were performed to access the efficacy of Cala Trio therapy. These studies have confirmed that using this therapy can effectively reduce the tremor up to 80% in patients. It was further shown that those patients who used it were having persistent relief for up to 96 minutes.

The Cala Trio is approved by FDA for essential tremor, although it still requires a prescription from a physician. 

For more detail, please read our review on Cala Trio.


4. Emma Wrist Watch

This uniquely designed wrist-worn device is primarily developed for Parkinson’s patients to overcome the effects of tremors in the hands.

The device is named after Emma Lawton, who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s at the age of 29. She is among those 2% of patients who got the disease at a young age. Due to continuous tremors in her hands, Emma was not able to write or draw properly. This inspired her friend Haiyan Zhang (an innovation director at Microsoft Research) to design a device that could help her to write and draw normally. Together with her team, Zhang managed to design a device in the form of a wristwatch that helped Emma to regain her writing ability.

The watch works by creating a vibration cue that distracts the brain from creating the tremor. The inside of the watch is packed with small vibrating motors. These motors produce vibration in a certain pattern which disrupts the pathway between the brain and the hand that triggers the tremor.

It makes the patient forget about the tremor, even though the tremor is there but no longer felt by the patient.

The device is in the prototype stage and its early model was unveiled at the Microsoft Build 2017 conference. Microsoft is collaborating with neuroscientists in London to test it on Parkinson’s patients. The company is hoping to launch the final product in the near future.


Disclaimer: The information shared here should not be taken as medical advice. The opinions presented here are not intended to treat any health conditions. For your specific medical problem, consult with your health care provider.

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