New research has generated an unprecedented breakthrough for people with spinal cord injury. CEO Duncan Wallace said that work carried out by US scientists published this week shows that recovery after spinal cord injury may be possible in ways that were previously unimaginable.
Reported this week in the medical journal Brain, four young men who have been paralysed for years have achieved groundbreaking progress—moving their legs—as a result of epidural stimulation.
"SpinalCure Australia is in the process of working to bring this research to Australia for the benefit of Australians with spinal cord injuries," said Mr Wallace. “The first stage of this initiative has now been announced online.”
Said Dr Vissel, a neuroscientist at the Garvan Institute, “Scientists are making exceptional improvements happen for some spinal cord injured people. One such individual reported in the recent scientific article is Kent Stephenson who was injured in a motocross accident in 2009 that broke his back at T5-T6. He was completely paralysed from the chest down. Kent Stephenson can now move his limbs below the injury”.
"One person a day in Australia is paralysed by a spinal cord injury. For decades, such people have been told they will never walk again", said Mr Wallace. "This new research could transform outcomes for some people and it is critical that we develop this in Australia for Australians”.
SpinalCure is committed to this goal, he said.
Now in its 20th year, SpinalCure Australia raises funds for medical research with the goal of finding a cure for spinal cord injury.
Feeling lonely? It may affect how your brain reacts to food, new research suggests