The announcement was made by Miguel Nicolelis, a specialist in neuroscience at Duke University in North Carolina (USA): Some paraplegics, forced in a wheelchair for years, have recovered sensitivity and the partial control of the legs thanks to what is heralded as an innovative treatment of “brain re-education and physical.” The unprecedented outcome of the study, conducted by the team of researchers led by Nicolelis as part of the project ‘Walk Again’ in Sao Paulo, Brazil, was published in the journal Scientific Reports, and more reminiscent of the brilliant advances of Philip Dick to the usual contexts of medical research. control the eight patients – six men and two women – undergoing treatment, paralyzed for many years from the waist down, have partially recovered the sense of touch, the sensation of pain, in some cases bladder and some movement after a year of ‘hi-tech rehabilitation’ Nicolelis because of what he called a “brain-machine interface” and a link between them and an avatar accomplished without the use of chip, electrodes or other stimulants in the body. Basically, it is as if their nervous system has been reprogrammed by this’s high-tech rehabilitation and a few nerves remained intact after the incident were able to awaken and receive the stimuli of the brain, allowing the partial recovery of motor and tactile functions. “I foresaw this amazing clinical results, we started the project – said Nicolelis -. So far no one had ever seen the recovery of these functions in patients for many years in conditions of complete paralysis,” said Miguel Nicolelis. The researchers started from the development of man-machine interface, or systems that pick up brain waves to “run” thoughts and intentions and translate them into a command to the PC or to a robotic arm or a prosthetic that helps to walk. On this line, Nicolelis has worked for almost twenty years to build and refine a system capable of recording hundreds of simultaneous signals from neurons in the brain, obtaining motor commands and translate them into movement. So the researchers asked patients to imagine moving your legs and collected their neural signals. With patients’ thoughts have animated avatars that enacting virtually the imagined movements. In addition, patients wore clothing with sensors and other technologies that can send Feedback to the patient himself. So, slowly, probably due to spinal nerves remained healthy and reprogrammed by the hi-tech training, the patient has started to feel tactile sensations. Where before there was the “silence” full of senses, explains Nicolelis, patients have begun to feel. For example, patients could experience the different feeling of walking on sand or asphalt (through their avatars). And that’s not all, with robotic legs, and use of virtual reality, patients have been able to voluntarily move some muscles and walk. Many volunteers have seen the changes after 7 months of training. After a year, for four of them feeling and muscle control had improved so significantly that doctors have updated the diagnosis from full to partial paralysis. Most patients saw improvements in the control of bladder and bowel, reducing dependence on laxatives and catheters. This, experts note, reduces the risk of infections, common in patients with chronic paralysis and often cause death. One of the participants, the ‘patient first’ is a 32 year old woman, paralyzed by 13: is the one that has benefited the most dramatic improvements. At the beginning of the trial, he was not able to stand using crutches, but in the course of the study was able to walk with a walker, crutches, and the help of a therapist. At 13 months after the start of the test was able to move his legs voluntarily.
- Topics:
- paraplegia
- paraplegic
- rehabilitation
- Scientific Reports
- Neuroscience
- Starring:
- miguel Nicolelis
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