Electrical device promising for spinal cord injury

Early tests are raising hopes that a new device can help people who’ve injured their spinal cord.

Implantation of an oscillating field stimulator, which generates an electrical field, is a safe, well-tolerated treatment that may improve motor and sensory function in such patients, findings from a pilot study suggest.

The device, which was developed at Purdue University, is placed near the site of injury and is designed to stimulate nerves to regenerate and, it’s hoped, restore some degree of function.

After seeing encouraging results in dogs with spinal cord injury, Dr. Scott Shapiro, from Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, and colleagues tested the device in humans. The researchers’ findings appear in the Journal of Neurosurgery-Spine.

The early-stage trial involved 10 patients with a complete spinal cord injury but no evidence on an MRI scan that the nerves had been actually severed.

Average pain-scale scores were 8 at the time the device was implanted. After six months, the scores had dropped to 2, and in most patients remained there after a year.

Treatment with the oscillating field stimulator was associated with significant improvements in sensitivity to light touch, pinprick sensation and motor function.

“This isn’t a home run, but it warrants additional investigation,” Schapiro said in a statement. “The big question was whether the procedure, which is very invasive and requires two surgeries, is efficacious and the initial results indicate that it is.”

Based on these findings, the US Food and Drug Administration has approved another trial of the device, which should begin early this year, the researchers note.

SOURCE: Journal of Neurosurgery-Spine, January 2005.

RELATED STORIES:
Irkutsk-based surgeons performed a unique operation   Liver transplant for hepatitis C has good outcome   U.S. clears new use for robot-like surgical device   Biochemical marker aids prognosis in liver transplant patients   Laser and ultrasound help wounds heal, in rats   Penis enlargement surgery a waste of time: study   Older adults may have a higher risk of complications and death after abdominal surgery   French face transplant woman grateful for new life   French surgeons ready to perform second face transplant   Tonsillectomy Surgical Procedures Compared for Post-operative Pain   Monitor may stop patient awareness during surgery   Treating appendicitis by laparoscopic surgery may not be worth the cost

Comments

[ + Post Your Own ]

Now you're in the public comment zone. What follows is not Armenian Medical Network's stuff; it comes from other people and we don't vouch for it. A reminder: By using this Web site you agree to accept our Terms of Service. Click here to read the Rules of Engagement.

There are no comments for this entry yet. [ + Comment here + ]