Jeremy
08-08-2002, 07:35 PM
Small step in battle to overcome spinal injuries
ALAN MacDERMID
THEY are small steps by most people's standards - but they are giant leaps for 14 patients pioneering a new treatment at the Scottish Spinal Injuries Unit.
With the aid of a harness, a treadmill, and electrodes wired to their legs, the paralysed patients are on the verge of walking again.
Success will crown 15 years of pioneering work by scientists at the Bio-Engineering Unit at Strathclyde University, and the doctors, nurses, and physiotherapists at the Queen Elizabeth spinal injuries unit at the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow.
Previous attempts at using electro-stimulation - on patients suffering complete severance of the spinal cord - have foundered.
The patients in the latest trial have some residual contact through the injury site, and a more realistic chance of benefiting from the treatment which combines the electro-stimulation and the treadmill exercises with physiotherapy.
"The idea is that we can tap into residual motor control and enhance it," said Dr Malcolm Granat, who is leading the trial. "There is a better potential, and if we can start the rehabilitation process early enough we hope this will restore the function of some of the neural circuits, though it will not provoke the growth of new ones."
The trial has been backed by an £80,000 grant from the Scottish Executive, and Dr Granat will soon present his results in the hope of getting more support.
Gillian Espie, 36, from Coatbridge, a patient who have been taking part in the trials, said : "I have had one course of treatment a day, and I can feel my legs a whole lot stronger. I am determined to walk out of here."
- Aug 9th
"If the wind could blow my troubles away. I'd stand in front of a hurricane."
ALAN MacDERMID
THEY are small steps by most people's standards - but they are giant leaps for 14 patients pioneering a new treatment at the Scottish Spinal Injuries Unit.
With the aid of a harness, a treadmill, and electrodes wired to their legs, the paralysed patients are on the verge of walking again.
Success will crown 15 years of pioneering work by scientists at the Bio-Engineering Unit at Strathclyde University, and the doctors, nurses, and physiotherapists at the Queen Elizabeth spinal injuries unit at the Southern General Hospital in Glasgow.
Previous attempts at using electro-stimulation - on patients suffering complete severance of the spinal cord - have foundered.
The patients in the latest trial have some residual contact through the injury site, and a more realistic chance of benefiting from the treatment which combines the electro-stimulation and the treadmill exercises with physiotherapy.
"The idea is that we can tap into residual motor control and enhance it," said Dr Malcolm Granat, who is leading the trial. "There is a better potential, and if we can start the rehabilitation process early enough we hope this will restore the function of some of the neural circuits, though it will not provoke the growth of new ones."
The trial has been backed by an £80,000 grant from the Scottish Executive, and Dr Granat will soon present his results in the hope of getting more support.
Gillian Espie, 36, from Coatbridge, a patient who have been taking part in the trials, said : "I have had one course of treatment a day, and I can feel my legs a whole lot stronger. I am determined to walk out of here."
- Aug 9th
"If the wind could blow my troubles away. I'd stand in front of a hurricane."