Europe Brief News – Micheal Rocatti was injured in a motorbike accident in 2017 and that accident made his lower body paralyzed. He lost all the hope of being able to walk again but Credit to the new spinal cord implant for its miracle.
The implant can transfer electrical pulses to muscles which help imitate the action of the brain. This spinal implant is in action after continuous research for the use of electrical pulses.
Rocatti told a journalist “It was a very emotional experience” when he took the first step using a spinal implant. Rocatti is one of the patients who were unable to walk after the accident.
The three of them are now able to take short steps after the inclusion of a six-metre implant in their spine.
Jocelyne Bloch, a neurosurgeon who helped lead the trail said “These electrodes were longer and larger than the ones we had previously implanted, and we could access more muscles thanks to this new technology”
The initial steps are quite difficult for the patients as they need support bars for the time being. Patients can take part in the rehabilion immediately, and within a few months patients will be able to walk.
George Courtine, a neuroscientist at the swiss federal institute said “ Rocatti is now able to stand for two hours and he can walk almost one kilometre without stopping”
Bright Future for neurological stimulation technology
The patient’s improvement is totally dependent on the working of electrical stimulation. The electrical stimulation can only trigger through the computer.
It starts to work once the patient activates a pattern of pulses. Two patients are now able to activate their muscles without the help of electrical pulses but that is very minimal.
The researcher is optimistic that there is huge scope for this application in the years to come. The team has made it clear that there is a significant amount of work needed before the implant is accessible to the general public.
The next aim is to miniaturise the computer that activates the pulses so the patient can control the implant with a smartphone.
The team is expecting to use it for large-scale trials involving a minimum of 50-100 patients In US and Europe. Courtine said “We believe there is a bright future for neurological stimulation technology”
