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(10.00 out of 10) (10.00 out of 10) (10.00 out of 10) (10.00 out of 10) (10.00 out of 10)Patients with spinal cord injuries could one day move paralysed parts of their bodies with a wearable robotic device controlled by a wireless chip implanted in the brain.
The technology is being developed through a £1m government-sponsored research programme involving academics from Leicester University, Newcastle University and Imperial College London. Continue Reading »
OTTAWA-Dr. Eve Tsai has made a real name for herself with her work in the operating room and in the research lab, Matthew Pearson reports.
The tragedy of young lives altered forever by freak accidents or foolish mistakes drives Dr. Eve Tsai to find a cure for spinal-cord injuries.
The causes may vary from car crash to sports mishap, but the result is often the same: a lifetime of paralysis. Continue Reading »
University of Alberta researchers have discovered spontaneously active receptors in the spinal cord
Bucking conventional knowledge, University of Alberta researchers have identified spontaneously active receptors in the spine that could be used to help treat victims of spinal cord injury.
David Bennett and Karim Fouad from the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine have discovered that the neurotransmitter serotonin, partially responsible for motor function, is not needed to activate receptors in the spinal column. Continue Reading »
U of A researchers uncover trigger that causes muscles to move without signal from brain
EDMONTON – Research led by a pair of University of Alberta scientists has uncovered a surprising phenomenon that offers hope of new treatments for people with spinal-cord injuries.
The team has pinpointed a unique ability of neurochemical receptors in the spinal cord as the reason why patients with partially and even fully severed cords often have some muscle activity. Continue Reading »
The art of spinal manipulation has been around for thousands of years, dating back to medicine men called “bone setters” at the time Socrates lived. Spinal manipulation, also known as spinal adjusting, is one of the most popular forms of treatment for many forms of back and neck pain.
Many clinicians such as physical therapists, chiropractors and physicians use spinal manipulation as a first line treatment option for spine pain. But despite its commonplace in modern medicine, there is still a shroud of mystery surrounding the logic and physical effects of a spinal adjustment. Continue Reading »
Paraplegia is paralysis (loss of movement or sensation, or both) brought on by a severe trauma to the central nervous system. It is the result of damage occurring at the level of the thoracic or lumbar vertebrae of the spinal cord, or lower.
The location of the spinal cord injury (SCI) is very important as the higher up the injury, the greater the area of paralysis. Continue Reading »
A bullet remains lodged in Michelle Alexander’s spinal cord nearly six years after her husband shot her four times — instantly paralyzing her — before killing himself in July 2004.
Doctors told her she’d probably never walk again. But a rehabilitation strategy being pioneered at the University of Louisville is changing her fate.
Today Alexander uses a walker to get around, takes tentative steps with two canes and gets on a specially designed treadmill four days a week as part of a research study evaluating Locomotor training, which UofL’s Susan Harkema helped develop to teach lost skills to broken nervous systems.
It’s one of several areas of spinal cord research at UofL and the University of Kentucky, home to two of about 10 large centers for such work in the nation. Continue Reading »
A protein called fibrinogen that is known to help form blood clots also triggers scar formation in the brain and spinal cord, according to new research in the April 28 issue of the Journal of Neuroscience. Researchers found that fibrinogen carries a dormant factor that activates when it enters the brain after an injury, prompting brain cells to form a scar. Scars in the brain or spinal cord can block connections between nerve cells and often keep injury patients from reaching full recovery. Continue Reading »
People who suffer a spinal cord injury often end up at least partially paralyzed. It used to be that they had little hope of walking again, but there have been huge strides made in getting paraplegics moving again.
Getting paralyzed patients truly up and walking on their own is still a ways off, but getting moving with the help a variety of assistive devices is starting to happen right now. Continue Reading »
Richard Borgens and his colleagues from the Center for Paralysis Research at the Purdue School of Veterinary Medicine have a strong record of inventing therapies for treating nerve damage. From Ampyra, which improves walking in multiple sclerosis patients to a spinal cord simulator for spinal injury victims, Borgens has had a hand in developing therapies that directly impact patients and their quality of life. Another therapy that is currently undergoing testing is the use of polyethylene glycol (PEG) to seal and repair damaged spinal cord nerve cells. Continue Reading »