Aiming for gold with the Mollii suit

His Mollii suit helps Rickard Nilsson towards his goal: taking gold at the Tokyo Paralympics

Meet Swedish para-cyclist Rickard Nilsson who has cerebral palsy. This short film, produced by Medtech4Health, presents the Mollii suit, which was developed to help people with spasticity or muscle tension. These are common symptoms for people with cerebral palsy, stroke, spinal cord injury, or other central nervous system damage. There are as yet few treatments for these problems and many have side effects, but the Mollii suit is very promising. Today, more that 1200 people use Mollii suits. One of them is Rickard Nilsson who is using the suit to help him reach his goal – taking a gold at the Paralympics in Tokyo in 2020.

The film is in Swedish, but scroll down to read more about the subject in English.

The Mollii electro-stimulation suit

The story behind Mollii begins in 2010 with chiropractor Fredrik Lundqvist who was working to help rehabilitate brain-damaged patients when he came up with the idea of putting electro-stimulation into clothing. The idea was that the embedded electrodes, similarly to TENS (electrical nerve stimulation), would give patients relief and increase their mobility. Mollii, was originally named the “electrodress”. It featured in Swedish TV’s Draknästet (the Swedish version Britain’s Dragons’ Den or the USA’s Shark Tank), won several major awards, and is now patented as a method and a product.

Learn more about the Mollii suit in English by following this link to Remotion, the Mollii suit distributors in Britain.

The Mollii suit can be used in the home and even by children and helps people with spasticity or muscle tension. Today there are few treatments for problems caused by acquired or congenital brain injuries and many treatments have side effects. The Mollii suit, which is CE-approved in Sweden, can now be prescribed by physiotherapists or occupational therapists in two of Sweden’s regional health districts, but the company’s goal is to make Mollii available to all who need it, regardless of where in the country they live.

“The Mollii is a washable full body suit with 58 insulated electrodes and a control unit that uses a weak current to stimulate muscles,” explains Annika Rydgård, a physiotherapist and research director at Inerventions. “The suit causes spastic muscles to relax as the electrodes stimulate and activate the opposing paired muscle to the tensed muscle. The mechanism is called reciprocal inhibition. Normally, muscles are activated by nerve signals from the central nervous system, but with Mollii, these nerve signals are replaced with electrical stimulation from the electrodes. Which electrodes are active are pre-programmed based on the user’s needs.”

Rikard Nilsson’s goal

Over 1200 people use Molli today. One of them is the para-cyclist Rickard Nilsson who at birth was affected by mild cerebral palsy. Rickard is using the suit to help him attain his goal – to win a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics. Rickard started cycling in 2014 and has already won several World Cup medals – most recently a silver and a bronze at the World Cup in South Africa.

“My bike is a three-wheeled racer – a trike,” says Rickard Nilsson. “I practice 10-12 hours a week and my goal is to compete for gold at the Tokyo Paralympics in 2020. I’ve used a Mollii suit since the end of 2010. Now I use it as part of my regular workout, especially to reduce muscle tension, increase my mobility and improve my fine motor skills.”

Medtech4Health supports medical technology development

The company that developed the Mollii suit, Inerventions, has won funding from two of Medtech4Health’s calls for funding applications. Together with the University of Borås, they received support under the Co-operation in Medical Technical Innovation call in 2017. They have also received funding under Competence Enhancement for Smaller Companies.

European MedTech Week 2018

This film was produced as part of our participation in this year’s European MedTech Week. During this week, 4th to 8th June, medical technology is being celebrated across Europe. Every day, companies, universities and hospitals collaborate across the country to develop and test new products. Or to make existing products even better.

Share your story about what medical technology is for you or how has helped improve your health. Use the hashtag #medtechweek and #medtechweekSE. Visit Medtech Week’s official website for more information in English.