Zapping the brain has allowed partially paralysed patients to walk again in a ‘major milestone’ for wheelchair users.
Deep brain stimulation has been found to improve walking and promote recovery in two people with a spinal cord injury.
The surgical procedure involves implanting electrodes into the brain to produce electrical impulses. These can be easily switched ‘on’ and ‘off’.
Traditionally, it has been used to treat movement disorders like Parkinson’s by targeting areas of the brain responsible for motor control.
Now, the technique has restored enough leg control for partially paralysed patients to walk unaided and even climb stairs.
When used in conjunction with rehabilitation, they continued to improve even when the deep brain stimulation was turned off.
This new discovery is unexpected, scientists say, as they are targeting a part of the brain – the lateral hypothalamus – that is not usually linked to paralysis and instead is typically associated with arousal, feeding and motivation.
They discovered it may play a role in movement during studies on mice with spinal cord injuries, using 3D imaging techniques to map which brain regions are involved in walking during recovery.
Zapping the brain has allowed partially paralysed patients to walk again in a ‘major milestone’ for wheelchair users. Deep brain stimulation has been found to improve walking and promote recovery in two people with a spinal cord injury (file image)
Wolfgang Jäger, 54, from Kappel, Austria, has been in a wheelchair since 2006 after a ski accident left him with a spinal cord injury.
After taking part in the clinical trial he is now able to walk up and down stairs and stand up to reach things in his kitchen cupboards.
While the technique has not completely ‘cured’ him – he still regularly uses a wheelchair – he said the procedure has given him a new lease of life.
Whereas before he would have to slide down stairs while sitting and physically lift each leg down every step, now – with the help of a handrail and a walking stick – he is able to get up and down stairs while remaining standing.
He has also been on holiday and was able to walk up and down steps to the sea – something he would not have been able to do previously.
‘At first, there was a big difference,’ he said. ‘And over time, with a lot of training and the stimulation, muscle strength started to develop.
‘It was clear that even without stimulation, progress was being made. I became faster, could walk longer.
‘The goal was to use stimulation during training but that eventually it wouldn’t be needed any more.
‘And that’s where I’m at now. I barely need to turn it on anymore.
‘Now, when I see a staircase with just a few steps, I know I can handle it on my own. It’s a great feeling when you don’t have to rely on others all the time.
‘After an accident or diagnosis, many people often fall into a hole and feel like everything’s over. But knowing something’s out there that helps motivates you to keep going and keep training.’
The discovery was made during studies on mice with spinal cord injuries, using 3D imaging techniques to map which brain regions are involved in walking during recovery (file image)
The team behind the treatment said their findings suggest it prompts a reorganisation of nerve fibres in the brain.
The research was led by professors Jocelyne Bloch, from Lausanne University Hospital, and Grégoire Courtine at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology.
‘The patients received these two implanted electrodes in the lateral hypothalamus and when we switched on the stimulation, they immediately felt the urge to walk,’ Professor Bloch said.
‘So they started rehabilitation with the stimulation and after six months we saw an improvement in their motor score that was really impressive.’
The same team have previously devised a spinal cord implant that allows people paralysed beneath the waist to walk, cycle and swim by ‘instructing’ certain muscles to contract and relax through the use of an iPad-like device.
The findings were published in the journal Nature Medicine.