Small steps for paralyzed man, giant leaps for treating spinal cord injuries

Source: Los ANgeles Times

A device helps a man paralyzed from the waist down make an 'unprecedented' recovery, taking steps on a treadmill and regaining other key functions. The treatment could potentially allow 10% to 15% of people with spinal cord injuries to regain some use of their legs.

A 25-year-old Los Angeles man paralyzed from the waist down after being hit by a car in 2006 has regained the ability to stand, take steps on a treadmill and move his hips, knees, ankles and toes voluntarily as a result of an experimental treatment developed at UCLA and the University of Kentucky.

Rob Summers has also regained some bladder and sexual function after intensive rehabilitation and two years of electrical stimulation to his damaged spinal cord with a device normally used for pain relief, researchers reported Thursday.

His recovery "remains unprecedented in spinal cord injury patients," who until now have faced a lifetime of paralysis, researchers from the University of Zurich wrote in an editorial accompanying the report in the journal Lancet. "We are entering a new era when the time has come for spinal-cord-injured patients to move."


Read more: http://www.latimes.com/health/la-he-spinal-cord-20110520,0,1799162.story

One of my best friends has a daughter who was injured in an auto accident days after graduating from high school.

Fantastic news!

He told me over and over, he emphatically knew that science and technology would develop the means to let him stand again, to walk one day, to use his hands just one more time... all he needed to do was live a little longer and it would happen.

Pat didn't make it but his dream is coming true. Tears are streaming down my face as I type this, and those of you who have lost loved ones know how I feel at this bittersweet moment. ... oh how I wish my wonderful brother were here with me, even if just for this one moment. Here's to you, Pat :toast: You called it!!! I love you, I miss you, and I feel you with me every day. :hug:

Thanks for posting this story. :)

Both are government (NIH, etc) supporteded institutions, and their budgets are getting whacked at the state level. The federal government is underfunding the NIH, which in turn means these researchers are likely to get less grant money, and may be shut down. I've seen EXCELLENT grant proposals with great scores get turned down because of the lack of research funds. It's going to start to really show in a very short time.