Paralyzed men voluntarily move legs without surgery: 5 key points

Spine

Paralyzed men moved their legs voluntarily during a UCLA study that used a noninvasive procedure stimulating the spinal cord, according to Laboratory Equipment. The study was published in the Journal of Neurotrauma.

Here are five key points:

 

1. In the study, V. Reggie Edgerton, PhD, and the researchers placed electrodes at the lower back and near the tailbone on the skin. They then provided electrical currents.

 

2. The study involved five paralyzed men who were given one 45-minute training sessions weekly for 18 weeks.

 

3. These results may yield the first time paralyzed patients were able to voluntarily move their legs without surgery.

 

4. Dr. Edgerton does not know if paralyzed people will be able to regain full control of their legs to walk.

 

5. Dr. Edgerton is a UCLA professor of integrative biology and physiology, neurobiology and neurosurgery.

 

"The fact that they regained voluntary control so quickly must mean that they had neural connections that were dormant, which we reawakened," said Dr. Edgerton. "It was remarkable."

 

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