Power Soccer is the first competitive team sport designed and developed specifically for power wheelchair users. Continue Reading »

ATLANTA, Georgia (CNN) — For the first time in the United States, stem cells have been directly injected into the spinal cord of a patient, researchers announced Thursday.

Doctors injected stem cells from 8-week-old fetal tissue into the spine of a man in his early 60s who has advanced ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. It was part of a clinical trial designed to determine whether it is safe to inject stem cells into the spinal cord and whether the cells themselves are safe. Continue Reading »

Over the last couple of days, the Reeve Foundation has focused on supporting relief efforts that are directed at the people of Haiti with existing and newly acquired disabilities. Portlight Strategies and UCP Wheels For Humanity are a perfect match for our mission and are mobilizing rapidly.

Both of these organizations are known to the Reeve Foundation from previous Quality of Life Grants and are already in motion shipping medical supplies and wheelchairs to Haiti. Continue Reading »

Wheelchair Users Say Paraplegic Action Movie Character Inaccurate, but Uplifting

Like others who flocked to see the blockbuster movie “Avatar,” 26-year-old Santina Muha was thrilled by the visuals.

But unlike the majority of people in the theatre, she wasn’t just imagining life on the distant moon Pandora. She was vicariously living the fantasy of regaining the use of her legs.

“The scene where the character goes from his wheelchair into his ‘avatar,’ where he’s walking and playing basketball, it was really touching,” said Muha, who had a spinal cord injury in a car accident at age 5. Continue Reading »

By Judith Shatto

I know personally the danger of drunk driving; the pain, heartbreak, consequences, and rage it can cause. My son and I live it every day. He is a quadriplegic, paralyzed from the chest down because of a drunk driver.

Having the opportunity to write my experience has been somewhat overwhelming to say the least. The opportunity I am calling my purge. To release the negative emotions I have held on to; to let others know that no matter how difficult life gets, if you look over your shoulder, there is often times someone with greater pain. Seems trivial but the saying – if life gives you lemons, make lemonade is true. Some of us just take longer to start squeezing them!

The first year of my son’s injury I fell into a deep hole of depression. I was so angry. Actually, anger isn’t the right word. I was living in rage. I was angry at the world, at God, and especially the drunk and our court system. I was overwhelmed with the fear of not understanding or knowing anything about spinal cord injuries. Overwhelmed and stuck in that place many of us know…the whys. Deep down I had enough faith that I knew we would get through this. I just didn’t know how long it would take. And the hole I found myself in was so deep; forget the rope, I was hanging on by a thread. Continue Reading »

Local clinic helping woman get stem cell treatment in Russia

Brittney Ham has a supportive family, determination and hope, a combination that keeps the thought of walking again active in her mind.

But money stands in her way.

“If I had the money I would be walking,” Ham said. Continue Reading »

Aspiring model Vladislava Kravchenko has a very good chance of recovery form her paralysis, according to doctors in Moscow, where she has now begun stem cell treatment.

“It’s great, I’m really happy. They’re helping a lot of people here. I am filled with hope,” Ms Kravchenko said. Continue Reading »

Christina Symanski is a painter. She has an exhibit going on right now at Kean University in New Jersey.

I’m happy to report that my recent exhibit opening was a big success. This particular exhibit is my third art exhibit and second solo show. The exhibit is at Kean University, in their Student Art Gallery. The gallery is located in Vaughn-Eames, which is the art building. Vaughn-Eames has two art galleries on the first floor, as well as a small theater. The opening reception was held in the Vaughn-Eames building lobby, from two to five p.m., Sunday, September 13, 2009. The exhibit will be available for viewing until October, 2, 2009. If you have friends or family that live in the area, please tell about the show. Continue Reading »

The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis is one of the biggest players in the spinal cord injury research arena (not counting the Reeve Foundation, of course). The catalyst for the Miami Project was the injury in a college football game of Marc Bouniconti who has lived with quadriplegia since 1985. His dad, Nick Bouniconti, is an NFL hall of famer and former Miami Dolphin.

This week Sports Illustrated has Marc in his wheelchair on the cover! The story of his injury intertwined his life with the lives of two other men is remarkable. Continue Reading »

A 3-year-old paralyzed Kentucky boy learned to walk again after trying a therapy that was financed by the Christopher Reeve Foundation’s Neuro-Recovery Network.

The image is forever ingrained in our memory: “Superman” actor Christopher Reeve, suspended over a treadmill. He was one of the first to try this radical new therapy known as locomotor training, developed by Dr. Susan Harkema, professor of neurosurgery at the Kentucky Spinal Injury Research Center.

“The spinal cord itself has a great capacity to learn, to remember, to forget and to make decisions,” Harkema said. “And the spinal cord can do that even when it’s disconnected from the brain.” Continue Reading »