A non-invasive technique based on external electrostimulation of the spinal cord has allowed 43 people who suffered from paralysis from the neck down They will regain partial control of their arms and hands. The results of this surprising trial have been published in the journal Nature Medicine and they constitute a significant advance that could help patients with spinal injuries use their hands again.
This innovative device has been developed by the Swiss medical technology company Onward – which a few months ago came to the fore for allowing a patient with Parkinson’s to recover the mobility lost 30 years ago – and supplies an electrical current through electrodes placed on the skin of paralyzed patients, near the area where their spinal cord suffered damage. After two months of therapy, 43 of the 60 people who participated in the trial regained strength and the ability to use their arms and hands.
In Onward’s X account they explain that the estudio Up-LIFT was designed to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of its investigational therapy ARC-EX® for improve upper extremity mobility in people with chronic incomplete tetraplegia, and that the results show that ARC-EX therapy is safe and effective, that 90% of participants improved the strength or function of their upper extremities, 87% of them stated that their quality life had improved, among other benefits.
In recent years there have been advances in the field of electrical stimulation of the spinal cord and with this technique it has been possible for several patients to recover the ability to walk, as demonstrated by a trial carried out by researchers from the Federal Polytechnic School of Lausanne (EPFL), in Switzerland, led by Gregoire Courtine and Jocelyne Bloch. However, these devices require invasive surgeries to be implanted near the spinal cord.
Rehabilitation program plus electrostimulation with ARC-EX
To test the safety and effectiveness of the device, a trial was carried out with 65 quadriplegic patients (60 completed the trial) who had suffered a spinal cord injury at the level of the cervical spine at least a year earlier. All of them followed a rehabilitation program for two months and later, for another two months, electrostimulation with ARC-EX was added to the same program. In 43 of the 60 patients there was a improves both the strength and functionality of arms and hands and no serious side effects were recorded.
Gregoire Courtinwho has been in charge of supervising this new study, explained in a press conference in which their results were presented that when they applied the stimulation they observed that “movement was immediately facilitated” and that they observed the growth of new connections between the nerves, greater sensitivity and ability to make pincer movements and strength, in addition to a “significant improvement in the quality of life of patients,” according to statements collected by the AFP press agency.
The researcher also highlighted that the patients experienced a decrease in the frequency and severity of muscle spasmsa reduction in pain and an improvement in the quality of sleep, as well as an improvement in their levels of independence to carry out activities of daily living.
This French neuroscientist told AFP that this work was the “first in the history of spinal cord medicine to demonstrate safety and effectiveness in improving the recovery of quadriplegics.”
Courtine mentioned that Onward had already started the process to obtain approval for the device in the United States, with the hope that it could hit the market there by the end of the year. Europe would follow soon after, he added. The price of Onward’s device is still unknown, although Courtine said the goal was to make it “affordable.”
“We must be prepared to include these new therapies in the usual clinical treatments of patients with spinal cord injuries, but it is necessary to advance little by little and not create false expectations”
“Spinal cord injury at the cervical level usually causes permanent alteration of the functions of the arms and hands, and this has a great impact on the quality of life of affected people. One of the main obstacles to developing effective therapies in this field is the limited repair and regeneration capacity of the central nervous system,” he explained in statements to SMC Spain. Eduardo FernandezDirector of the Bioengineering Institute of the Miguel Hernández University of Elche and director of the Biomedical Neuroengineering group of the Biomedical Network Research Center for Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN).
According to this expert, it is important to highlight that the study was carried out “in patients with incomplete spinal cord injury of more than 12 months of evolution,” a relevant fact because “the effects of rehabilitation are usually very limited once the chronic phase is reached.” of tetraplegia.” He considers that the results are good, but warns that “there is no control group nor is it a randomized trial, so more studies are still necessary to confirm the effectiveness of this new therapeutic approach and to identify those patients who could be affected.” benefit more from this treatment.”
“In this context, it must be taken into account that there is great variability in the motor functions of people with tetraplegia and that we still do not fully understand the mechanisms responsible for the improvements induced by electrical stimulation.” “The future is hopeful and we must be prepared to be able to include these new therapies in the usual clinical treatments of patients with spinal cord injuries. However, it is necessary to move forward little by little and not create false expectations,” he concludes.
The American neuroscientist Chet Moritzanother of the study’s lead authors, concluded at a press conference that “I think it could change the lives of most people with spinal cord injury.”
Source: www.webconsultas.com