United States: Research reports that a new spinal cord implant offers SMA patients increased muscle function, which enables better movement ability, including improved walking capabilities.
Remarkable Improvements in Just One Month
Three individuals with SMA received an electrical stimulation device through implantation which led to remarkable developments within a single month. All three adults had SMA a genetic disorder that slowly degenerates their muscle functionality, as reported by HealthDay.
“These people were definitely not expecting an improvement,” Marco Capogrosso, an assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh who led the research, told The Associated Press. Yet “they were getting better and better.”
How the Implant Works
A study published February 5 in Nature Medicine demonstrates that spinal stimulation technology may be an innovative treatment approach for SMA and other diseases causing muscle deterioration.
The advanced stage of SMA attacks motor neurons, which transmit signals from the spinal cord to muscles.
When motor neurons degenerate the resulting muscle weakness leads to problems with walking and standing in addition to severe respiration issues.
Through electrical pulse transmission the implant activates weakened muscles in the lower spinal cord region.
Research investigators evaluated the device using three adult SMA patients by monitoring their core strength and muscle fatigue alongside a range of movement and walking capacity assessments both during device activation and inactivation phases.
The implant system improved patient mobility although it did not reach standard movement levels after patients received spinal stimulation for a few hours weekly.
Measurable Mobility Gains
According to the reported study all patients demonstrated improved walking distance during their six-minute examination interval.
During the course of the study, this participant developed the ability to stand after starting to do so in a kneeling position.
The walking pattern of another participant evolved into movements which extended three times beyond their normal length.
“With a progressive disease you never get any better,” study participant Doug McCullough, 57, of Franklin Park, N.J., told The Associated Press. “Either you’re staying stable or getting worse. So, making any improvement is just a really surreal and very exciting benefit.”
The treatment advantages persisted throughout the time that the device remained switched off.
Lasting, But Temporary, Benefits
The therapeutic effects of the treatment maintained their strength for some period following the treatment but these benefits gradually diminished with time.
McCullough experienced his legs feeling supercharged between stimulation sessions according to the Associated Press report.
The researchers were required to remove the devices because this research had a brief duration.
At his six-week follow-up examination, McCullough noticed trace improvements still existed; however, they vanished completely by the six-month mark.
A Major Step Forward in Neuromuscular Treatment
The scientist who conducted groundbreaking research into spinal cord injury stimulation at the University of Louisville determined the results were substantial, as reported by HealthDay.
“Human spinal circuitry is very sophisticated — it’s not just a bunch of reflexes controlled by the brain,” neuroscientist Susan Harkema, who is now with the nonprofit Kessler Foundation, told The Associated Press. “This is a very solid study, an important contribution to move forward.”