Fr the Via Emilia and the Paralympic medals is Vigorso di Budrio. Here, to the north east of Bologna, in the placid countryside of threshed wheat, the theory of small buildings that form the Inail prosthesis center unfolds. It was a sanatorium from the end of the 19th century, today it is the promised land where invalids at work and civil invalids seek life again and, perhaps, a triumph. Because this is where many athletes from Italy come to compete in Tokyo.
More than 11 thousand patients every year
The Center, in its long corridors, rehabilitation rooms and clinics, welcomes more than 11,000 patients every year: they move around in wheelchairs, others try on new prostheses with still uncertain steps, some await medical examinations. Gregorio Teti is the director of the technical area: “The department consists of a division for institutional research, a production area with offices in Vigorso, Rome and Lamezia Terme, and an experimentation area for research activities applied. In this sector there is the trend of sport, in which particular processes are characterized for a more pushed experimentation ». Just like it happens in the racing departments of car manufacturers: research is done, prototypes are created, which, tested, are sent for production on a larger scale and destined for everyday life.
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A multidisciplinary management
The athletes arrive in Vigorso – now there are about twenty of the National team followed at the Center, eight of whom have obtained the pass for Tokyo – based on an agreement with the Italian Paralympic Committee (Cip) and “their path does not differ from that of any other patient », explains Andrea Cutti, head of applied research. There is a multidisciplinary taking charge by an extended team that involves an athletic trainer, orthopedic technicians, engineers, doctors and psychologists to understand the functional requirements and objectives of the athlete: “Working with athletes – continues Cutti – is very engaging , they have high demands and a competitive mentality, they aim only for results, without listening to too many reasons. They also call you on Sunday mornings and our challenge is to always find a solution to every pain they feel while running, to every sensation that is not fluid in the movement ». Because the results will come the more the athlete’s body is respected: «When constructing the prosthesis, the components with the best yield, maximum performance and total respect for the biomechanics of the athlete who should not be overloaded are sought on the market. The more symbiosis there is between athlete and prosthesis, the better the yield. The same is true of what happens in F1, in the relationship between car and driver: with the same performance of the car, the difference is made by the driver who shares doubts and feelings with the mechanics, as the champions do with us ».
Public body with many collaborations
Each prosthesis thus becomes a gear resulting from a thousand, successive approximations towards the best solution for which “athletes say thank you with immense smiles and enveloping silences”, confesses Cutti. It starts from the socket, the most important part of the prosthesis, the tailored suit of each, which is “fitted” on the stump, a “knee” and a “foot” are added. Almost a puzzle, but it is life that changes and finds new ways: “Engineers are children who still love playing with Lego very much”, smiles Simona Amadesi who has been in charge of the communication of the Center for thirty years. And they know how to put those who have fallen into the void on their feet. «Components and raw materials used in a sports prosthesis are worth around 10-12 thousand euros – explains Teti – but the cost is seven times higher because it includes the effort of an entire team. The Inail Center, which is a public body, can afford this commitment because the institute makes important economic resources available to the patients: thus, we study, experiment, hypothesize, also thanks to collaborations with the biomedical campus of Rome, the University of Padua, the Milan Polytechnic, the Italian Institute of Technology or the Sant’Anna School of Pisa ».
The strength of certain intuitions
Then, everything begins and ends in the laboratories, in the workshops, in the new rooms with robots and 3D printers, between ancient craftsmanship and spatial high-tech. In each prosthesis there are gypsum powder (used for the mold for the socket) and materials that go to the Moon, such as carbon fiber or the modern pre-impregnated carbon with high bending capacity and used in the F1 bodies. Without forgetting the strength of certain intuitions that can change performances: «The prostheses with which our Azzurri will race are revolutionary – explains Cutti, with a certain pride -. Traditionally the thigh of the amputees was flexed by 5 degrees, now we have brought this flexion to a more natural 12-14%: you will see the elegance, the composure in the running of the blues because they will suffer less load on the back and less pitching of the trunk ».