Spinal injury
A means to accelerate regeneration of neurons and reconstruct the neural circuit in the spine has been discovered, in a further breakthrough for spinal cord injury patients worldwide.
A nanobiomaterial, layered double hydroxide (LDH), has been proven to inhibit the inflammatory environment surrounding spinal cord injuries in mice, in research from Tongji University in Shanghai. For the first time, the study was also able to identify the underlying genetic mechanism by which LDH works.
Efforts to bring epidural stimulation into mainstream use - which could enable people with spinal cord injury to walk again - have moved a step closer through new funding for the project.
In 2018, the University of Louisville made news worldwide when two people diagnosed with spinal cord injuries recovered the ability to walk through the experimental use of epidural stimulation. However, since that time, the use of the breakthrough therapy outside of a research lab setting have so far not come to fruition. However, the prospect has moved a step closer with a $7.8million grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, one of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Intravenous injection of bone marrow derived stem cells (MSCs) in patients with spinal cord injuries led to significant improvement in motor functions, new research has found.
For more than half of the patients, substantial improvements in key functions — such as ability to walk, or to use their hands — were observed within weeks of stem cell injection, the study from Yale University reports.
A Formula One racing team has renewed its commitment to the Spinal Injuries Association (SIA), in recognition of the support it has given to the team’s founder.
Williams Racing has announced that SIA will continue to be the official charity of the team, a status is has had since 2015. The team has a long association with the charity - which provides information, advice and support to the 50,000 people living with spinal injury in the UK - dating back to when Sir Frank Williams became spinal cord injured following a car accident in 1986. Sir Frank received support from SIA as he recovered and returned back to work, subsequently leading the team to achieving nine Formula One World Championship Constructors’ Titles.
Blood pressure can be controlled without drugs after spinal cord injury, new research has revealed.
Spinal cord stimulators can bridge the body’s autonomous regulation system, controlling blood pressure without medication, the study found. Led by Dr Aaron Phillips at the University of Calgary's Cumming School of Medicine (CSM) and Grégoire Courtine, from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), the study has been hailed as having “life-changing” consequences for people with spinal cord injury.
A paraplegic cyclist has utilised the power of Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) to pedal his way to second place at the annual Cybathlon. Now, he’s embarking on another journey to raise £1 million to fund research on spinal stimulation; a treatment method which aims to improve the recovery and function of people with paralysis.
Following a trampolining accident in 2011 at the age of 16, Johnny Beer (AKA BionicBeer), was paralysed from the chest down.
Almost ten years later, the 25-year-old has snatched the silver medal at the Cybathlon 2020 FES Bike Race. BionicBeer powered his bike using Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES), a method which contracts paralysed muscles using small electrical charges.
Electrodes are placed on the skin through which an electrical current is passed. This effectively replaces the nervous system stimulus that is lost when someone is paralysed.
