ABDUL Latif Jameel on Wednesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Japanese company CYBERDYNE, Inc. to bring state-of-the-art technology to Saudi Arabia that helps patients who have suffered traumatic spinal injuries.
Coinciding with King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud’s visit to Japan this week, Abdul Latif Jameel has signed an MoU on CYBERDYNE’s Cybernic treatment and its revolutionary Hybrid Assistive Limb (HAL), a form of robotic technology that can regenerate, improve, support and expand patients’ brain-neuro-physical functions.
Mohammed Abdul Latif Jameel, Chairman and CEO of Abdul Latif Jameel, said: “Thanks to advances in medicine and technology, patients should be able to lead better quality lives after suffering major spinal injuries. CYBERDYNE are at the forefront of developing highly advanced medical technology, and the MoU will bring this technology to patients in Saudi Arabia, which aims for transforming lives for the better.”
The MoU was signed by Mohammed Abdul Latif Jameel and Prof. Yoshiyuki Sankai, president and CEO of CYBERDYNE, Inc.
The technology will initially be available at Abdul Latif Jameel Hospital, which specializes in medical rehabilitation, in Jeddah, with the plan to roll-out the technology across the country at a later date.
More than 13,000 people suffered traumatic spinal injuries in Saudi Arabia in 2015, according to official Saudi government statistics. — SG
