Electrical rehabilitation
Scientists from Russia and the USA have returned the ability to walk to the paralytic
Neurophysiologists from Russia and the United States have returned the ability to stand and walk independently to a paralyzed man confined to a wheelchair after falling from a snowmobile. The treatment methodology and conclusions were presented in the journal Nature Medicine (Gill et al., Neuromodulation of lumbosacral spinal networks enables independent stepping after complete paraplegia).
"The electrical stimulator we used was originally designed for completely different things, including suppressing chronic pain. After we turned on this implant, the patient was able to quickly learn how to control his muscles, stand and walk without any external help," said Kendall Lee from the Mayo Clinic in In Rochester (in the press release Spinal Cord Stimulation, Physical Therapy Help Paralyzed Man Stand, Walk with Assistance – VM).
Spinal injury often leads to partial or complete paralysis, depending on the location of the injury. To date, scientists are developing several methods of treating such injuries. In most cases, biologists are trying to use stem cells to restore connections in the damaged spinal cord. There are also fundamentally different methods – connecting the limbs to the brain using electrodes.
Li and his colleagues, including neurophysiologists from the Pavlov St. Petersburg Institute of Physiology of the Russian Academy of Sciences, developed an original technique several years ago that allows paralyzed rats to regain freedom of movement without surgery and stem cell injections.
They drew attention to the fact that even with the most serious spinal cord injuries, part of the nerve fibers remain intact. These chains of neurons are not involved in the work of the body's motor system, but they can be switched to perform a new task.
Electrical stimulation of these neurons and special training in a special exoskeleton allowed the rats to almost completely restore the mobility of their paws after partial severing of the spine. Later, scientists conducted similar experiments on monkeys.
Good results on experimental animals allowed Lee and his associates to conduct an experiment involving a 29-year-old volunteer who was paralyzed as a result of a fall from a snowmobile in 2013. As a result of a spinal fracture, he lost the ability to walk, while maintaining control over his hands and other parts of his body.
Two years ago, Lee notes, surgeons implanted a set of electrodes into the damaged part of the spinal cord. When they took root, scientists began to conduct the same series of exercises with the young man as with animals, actually re-training his brain to control the movement of his legs.
Just two weeks later, the volunteer learned to stand on his own and make arbitrary movements with his legs while inside the exoskeleton. A more complete rehabilitation, after which the man learned to walk independently without the help of this device and the "tips" of the physiotherapists' hands, required another 44 weeks of training and exercises.
Now, according to Lee, their ward can stand on his own, walk on a treadmill, leaning on handrails, and move hundreds of meters without the help of medical staff using a walker. New stimulating programs and rehabilitation techniques, scientists hope, will help the patient walk faster and move longer distances.
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru