BIDMC receives grant to study new noninvasive neurophysiologic intervention for spinal cord injuries

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) has been awarded a grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to investigate the use of a new noninvasive neurophysiologic intervention for the treatment of patients with spinal cord injuries.

Alvaro Pascual-Leone, MD, PhD, Director of BIDMC's Berenson-Allen Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation, will serve as Co-Principal Investigator of the two-year $525,824 grant, together with Dylan Edwards, PhD, of the Burke Medical Research Institute/Weill Cornell Medical College. Mar Cortes, MD, will be a key investigator overseeing the protocol implementation and bridging the two study sties at BIDMC and Burke.

Spinal Associative Stimulation (SAS) is a noninvasive therapy that combines transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and peripheral nerve stimulation to help bolster rehabilitation in patients with incomplete spinal cord injuries. SAS works by engaging and strengthening residual undamaged spinal-cord fibers - present in many of even the most severely injured patients - to increase voluntary activation of weakened muscles.

"This is a very exciting study," says Pascual-Leone. "We need new methods to enhance recovery in patients with spinal-cord injury and this funded study is critical to increase our understanding of SAS, which harnesses nervous system plasticity to promote clinical recovery. Ultimately, to maximally help patients, we envision the combination of this neuromodulation technique with other interventions, such as pharmacologic treatments, stem cell therapy and robotic training."

Between 10,000 and 12,000 new spinal cord injuries occur each year, leaving a majority of patients paralyzed and unable to walk.

SAS could also help doctors in treating other neurological disorders, says Pascual-Leone, adding that a combination of neuromodulation techniques to induce changes in neural plasticity of the spinal fibers, together with behavioral training and drug therapies, could lead to changes in helping patients with brain and spinal cord injuries to recover.