Spinal Implants Allow Three Paralyzed Men to Walk Again
February 9th, 2022Via: Independent:
Three patients suffering from complete paralysis had their body movements rapidly restored thanks to a new implant being studied as part of an ongoing clinical trial.
The novel implant electrically stimulates the spinal cord and was found to restore body movements within a few hours of the onset of therapy in the patients, showed new research.
The implant stimulated muscles with electrical impulses, mimicking the brain’s actions, and could potentially lead to novel therapies for people with severe spinal injuries who struggle to stand, walk and exercise.
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While electrical stimulation of the spinal cord has been a promising treatment option for restoring body movements in people with spinal cord injuries, these approaches have so far primarily involved repurposing technologies originally designed to treat pain, researchers said.
The scientists, including Andreas Rowald from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), said these re-purposed electrical stimulation devices failed to stimulate all the nerves in the spinal cord associated with leg and trunk movements.
The use of such neuro-technologies limited the recovery of all motor functions as a result, the scientists added.
In the new research, the scientists designed a new electrode paddle that targeted all the nerves associated with leg and trunk movements in the spinal cord.
“So we’ve developed a completely new electrode array that is wider and longer. I could implant this electrode array just under the vertebra and upon the spinal cord,” Jocelyne Bloch, the study’s corresponding author from EPFL, said in a statement.
More: New Spinal Implant Gets Paralyzed People Up and Walking
