REHACARE 2023 – Become an exhibitor now

Frank Lackner fights for more accessibility in public spaces. In 1991, he and a friend founded the International Citizens' Initiative for Wheelchair Users' Interests, or INTERROLLI in short. What improvements he would like to see in disabled toilets and how else he rolls, he tells us on REHACARE.com.

Accessibility plays a key role for Annika Schröder. She sees a need to catch up in many areas – from public transport to bureaucracy. The 25-year-old competitive athlete has the support of her friends and family. Why she would like to see more determination from politicians and how she rolls otherwise, she tells us on REHACARE.com.

Not just stand, but dance – that's what Sebastian Stabler would like to do. He is still waiting for the right assistive equipment. But the paraplegic 37-year-old already shows himself to be a sporty and active person. Why he would like to meet a certain bodybuilder and how he rolls otherwise, he tells us on REHACARE.com.

Writing a book – a dream for many people. For Karina Sturm, it was a chance to accept her diagnosis. By giving advice, she wants to enable other people to do what she has managed to do herself: to become an active part of their own disease management and to live a self-determined life. How she rolls otherwise, she tells us on REHACARE.com.

Nowadays, mobility for many people with disabilities means being able to be self-determined in their own car. One prerequisite for this is a driver's license. Which detours and obstacles Sascha Scholz had to overcome to get his license, where he went on his subsequent European tour, and how he rolls otherwise, he tells us on REHACARE.com.

Self-determined mobility is possible in Kae Tran's everyday life mainly through her walking stick. The aid has become her most important companion. What changes she would like to see in rollators and in society, what role mental health plays for her and how she rolls otherwise, she tells us on REHACARE.com.

Code-compliant handrail systems provide safety and make stairs accessible and usable for more people. They help reduce fall risk, facilitate more mobility, and allow people to gain access to all rooms. Thanks to its work with older adults and people with disabilities, Flexo-Handlaufsysteme GmbH knows about potential barriers and has made it its mission to promote the self-determination of people.

IndeeLift offers human lifting tools that provide greater independence and safety for people with mobility impairment and their caregivers. It is a device that helps caregivers lift, transfer and transport patients in acute, post-acute, long-term and home care environments. At the same time, it can support people who live alone.

Building communication, strengthening skills, and responding to individual needs – that is the goal of icho systems GmbH. To realize their vision, the team has developed the ichó therapy ball. It brings therapeutic measures and individual support to people's homes and can be used to promote cognition and motor activity.

The goal of THERA-Trainer by medica Medizintechnik GmbH is to make it easy for people with restricted mobility to regain their lost mobility. That is why the family company has designed professional therapeutic products and robotic assisted complete solutions for all phases of lower extremity rehabilitation.

How can traveling become more accessible and more self-determined for wheelchair users – especially when traveling by plane or taking a cab? This is the question Andrea Mocellin wanted to address when he started inventing Revolve Air. His solution: a wheelchair with foldable wheels and a foldable frame.

Inspired by the self-balancing Segway, Genny Mobility developed a wheelchair equivalent. What started as a newbie on the mobility aids market, now is ready for its third generation. The new wheelchair will be revealed in two weeks at this year’s REHACARE. Francesca Belotti allows for a little glimpse into what we can expect.

The company MEYRA has produced the first folding wheelchair named NANO S. It is a folding wheelchair with open frame and removable leg supports, which stands out with its lightness and stability.

An evaluation report by the European Commission reported on the first three years of application of the Web Accessibility Directive (WAD). The period of the review overlaps with the accelerated digital transformation brought on by the pandemic.

Many stroke survivors suffer from aphasia. According to a recent study at the University of Helsinki, singing-based group rehabilitation can support patients' communication and speech production and increase social activity even in the chronic phase of stroke.

Denise was 29 years old when she underwent disc surgery – a seemingly harmless procedure. However, the surgery didn't go as smoothly as planned and when she woke up from anaesthesia, she could no longer feel her right thigh. The diagnosis: incomplete paraplegia. The world's first smart leg orthosis, the C-Brace® has given the mother of two new mobility and improved her quality of life.

ReWalk, a leading provider of innovative technologies that enable mobility and wellness in rehabilitation and daily life for individuals with neurological conditions, announced that its innovative ReWalk Personal Exoskeleton technology has received clearance from the FDA for use on stairs and curbs in the US, making it the only personal exoskeleton to receive FDA clearance for this indication.

Being a frail elderly person and using a wheelchair involves a substantially reduced risk of fractures, a University of Gothenburg study shows. More prescriptions for wheelchairs may result.

The transition from elderly people being fully independent to needing a bit of help is often gradual. Sometimes the signs aren’t obvious nor are these people actively seeking out help. But in order to keep them safe in their own home, we need to proactively take some steps to make daily tasks easier.

World record holder Johannes Floors has made it his mission to introduce children and young people with prostheses to the world of sport. That's why he is devoting three days of his time to the youngest at the “Talent Days” in order to work with Ottobock technicians to fit and extensively test sports prostheses.

Researchers from HSE University and the Moscow State University of Medicine and Dentistry have developed a machine learning model that can predict the word about to be uttered by a subject based on their neural activity recorded with a small set of minimally invasive electrodes.

The occupational therapist is an important piece of the puzzle for anyone who experiences a significant mobility impairment. Their job is to assess and plan ways to help their client conduct daily activities and maintain the lifestyle they want with as little stress as possible.

Stress, unhealthy nutrition, lack of exercise – our modern lifestyle has many negative effects on our health. But none of these problems is as easy to solve as the latter. Because all it takes is a little nudge to get moving again. But what to do when movements become more difficult and sometimes even impossible with increasing age?

Lukas drives his new Ford Tourneo Connect with the Space Drive driving and steering system and two joysticks – one for accelerator/brake and one for steering. But every now and then, someone else sits behind the steering wheel who doesn't need these input devices. Thanks to a resourceful solution from PARAVAN's technicians, this can be realized within a minute.

On 20 February, the global healthtech company Ottobock opened the doors to its most state-of-the-art and future-oriented clinic to date. Located in the newly developed Sartorius Quarter in the German city of Göttingen, the clinic will provide care for patients across the country and worldwide.

They are barely the size of a thumbnail, able to communicate with each other and respond to each other, and designed to make life easier for people with functional limitations. We are talking about a new generation of interactive microimplants. These miniature assistants can act as a stimulus in cases of tinnitus or digestive tract disorders or help a person’s hand to regain the ability to grip.

Statistics indicate that nearly 10 million people in the European Union are living with the severe consequences of a stroke. It is a condition that usually leaves the patient disabled, often requiring constant care. Rytis Maskeliūnas, together with an international team, has developed an app that will teach how to take care of a person who has suffered a stroke in a virtual environment.

Alexander Klems has been driving wheel loaders for 21 years. In 2019, everything was going to be different. He got injured. He could no longer operate the accelerator pedal of his Hitachi ZW 330 wheel loader, which he almost always has to step on when loading construction materials. Another solution was needed, which was found at PARAVAN thanks to the Space Drive drive-by-wire system.

Some 30,000 people in the U.S. are affected by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, a neurodegenerative condition that damages cells in the brain and spinal cord necessary for movement. Now, a team of researchers has developed a soft robotic wearable capable of significantly assisting upper arm and shoulder movement in people with ALS.

Shower chairs are most certainly not built equal. Unfortunately in the mobility equipment industry there are many options that seem attractive in price but fail to do their main job properly: safely support a mobility impaired person. It’s very common for a family and their disabled loved one to try different shower chairs over the course of their journey.

Kinova, a leading global provider of robotic solutions for people with disabilities, is adding two dynamic arm support systems to its portfolio. With the Gowing² and the Dowing² from Dutch manufacturer Focal Meditech, Kinova completes the supply chain for people who have limited arm function due to a disease or accident.

Following the positive vote of the ethics committee of the State Medical Association of Hesse, a multi-centre study launched in January 2023 in several MEDIAN hospitals, in which amputees receive a special prosthesis from Ottobock. The research project is intended to show how modern rehabilitation with longer stays and optimal prosthetics can improve the treatment situation for amputees in Germany

A mind-controlled wheelchair can help a paralyzed person gain new mobility by translating users’ thoughts into mechanical commands. On November 18 in the journal iScience, researchers demonstrate that tetraplegic users can operate mind-controlled wheelchairs in a natural, cluttered environment after training for an extended period.

To overcome the challenges resulting from the pandemic, sports clubs and associations had to get creative. Reinhard Schneider, Chairman of the Disabled and Rehabilitation Sports Association of North Rhine-Westphalia e. V., knows about the future challenges disability sports face due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the impact on sports associations.

A wheelchair should fit your needs and support your life wherever it may take you. In theory, you can find the perfect model from many available options. But for one group of people, the choices are more limited – children. Meanwhile, they are the ones in dire need of assistive technology that helps them play with their friends and fosters their independence.

Not many of us are lucky enough to find our dream job and stay in it until the day we retire. Sometimes this might be due to health and medical reasons, which could necessitate occupational rehabilitation. If people have a severe disability, Germany’s Federal Integration Offices, or Inclusion Offices along with the pension insurance providers are the responsible authorities.

They used to have an image problem. But now, rollators or walkers, are anything but boring or stuffy. For many, they are treasured state-of-the-art companions for everyday life and a way to express their personality.

Whether it’s activities in the water, snow or at home – exercise is a great way to boost your health and feel better. A wide range of assistive technology also makes this an option for people with physical disabilities or mild dementia. Some of these tools allow users to enjoy sports in spectacular, beautiful backdrops – in both winter and summer.

Off the soccer field, professional footballer Lionel Messi is known for his commercials for Pepsi, Lay's or Dolce & Gabbana. Now he has also become the brand ambassador for OrCam MyEye and shines a bright light on this unique assistive technology. Why did the two decide to form this rather unusual partnership?

Years of business expertise, in-house production, and new personnel competency – the Motion Solutions GmbH is well-positioned to withstand the challenges brought by the coronavirus pandemic and continues to offer its customers the best service. CEO Gierse discusses the role products like the COSEAT and EasyStand play in this setting and reveals the expectations the moso team has for the future.

From the valley to the hut in a wheelchair – and no shuttle bus or mountain railway required. Wheelchair manufacturer Sunrise Medical teamed up with various partners as part of a joint initiative to turn this idea into a reality.

Going on new adventures with the whole family is fun for everybody. At least, if the necessary assistive devices meet the needs of their users. So does Joëlette Kid – the new all-terrain chair by Ferriol-Matrat. In an interview with REHACARE.com, Alison-Lore Bourget told us about the special features and how especially the children react to their new possibilities.

Simple, ergonomic, reliable – the multifunctional handles, ACCEL BIKE and ACCEL QUAD, enable improved participation in a mobile and self-determined life. What the two solutions have in common and yet differ, Pierre Gouraud, International Sales of Sojadis Equipement, reveals in an interview with REHACARE.com.

Solid and adapted – this is how auxiliary means for competitive sports such as wheelchair basketball should be. That's why EXTRA wheelchairs from Turkey offers made to measure sports wheelchairs to professional sports people. REHACARE.com talked to Demirhan Serefhan, Managing Director of EXTRA, about the importance of customization and valuable feedback directly from the basketball court.

Since May 2020, the sibling support of the Angelika Reichelt Kinder- und Jugendhospizes Joshuas Engelreich (English: Angelika Reichelt Children and Youth Hospice) has been taking place in the newly created so called Geschwisterinsel (English: Sibling Island). You can gain a small insight in our photo gallery.