Medical-Grade TPE Used for Award-Winning Therapy Ball

An award-winning therapy ball developed to promote cognitive and motor skills in a playful way for both young and old people with cognitive diseases, resulted from a collaboration between Hexpol TPE and Germany’s Icho Systems GmbH.

Depending on the application, the ichó  therapy ball can react with colored lights, vibrations, sound or music. The reactions are individually adaptable to the needs of the user. Current application areas include people with dementia and children, with a special focus on learning for people with autism.

The ichó ball is constructed from an injection molded outer skin which houses the lights, speaker, sensors and electronics. Mediprene TPE was selected due to its soft-touch haptics and good light permeability. The material also needs to be easily cleaned. Mediprene TPEs have been shown to be resistant to the most common cleaning fluids used in the healthcare environment.

As a medical product, the ichó therapy ball has been specially developed for use in a medical context; therefore, a medical-grade material was required. Representative Mediprene TPE materials have been tested for cytotoxicity according to ISO 10993-5 and for biocompatibility according to ISO 10993-10 (Intracutaneous Reactivity)/-11 (Acute Systemic Toxicity) and USP Class VI. Mediprene materials are latex-free, which reduces the risk of allergic reactions. In accordance with ISO 10993 - 10 'Tests for Sensitization and Irritation,' a representative Mediprene compound was shown to have no sensitization potential and classified as a non-sensitizer.

Said Samantha Scharf, marketing & distribution at icho systems,"We chose Hexpol TPE for two reasons - material and service! Service is one of the top priorities for us, and that's how we live with our customers. It was important to us to work with medical material, and we had the relevant prerequisites here. We were given in-depth information about material options right from the first contact. There was also a quick and good answer to further inquiries. In addition to Hexpol's own product portfolio, the advice was always good and fast, so that the time to final production could be kept very short".

Since the ichó therapy ball was launched, it has gathered an impressive list of awards in Germany and Europe for its novel design and social impact.