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A recent clinical study has found evidence that lab rats, which at one point were paralyzed, have regained their ability to walk after undergoing a triple tactic approach to curing paralysis.
Conducted by the University of California, Los Angeles, the paralyzed rats were subjected to a mixture of pharmaceuticals, electrical stimulation of the spinal cord, and rehabilitating locomotor exercise. The result proved that the rats’ muscles, though unable to transfer signals from the brain, were able to walk at a moderate pace on treadmills.
Our firm’s paralysis attorneys applaud the efforts of modern scientists and continue to support them in their search for a cure to paralysis. Current paralysis treatments are constantly improving, giving hope to people whose lives have been affected by spinal cord injuries.
Often studies like this one are focused on different methods for regenerating nerve fibers and neurological connections after injuries to the human spinal cord occur. When spinal cord nerves are damaged, the brain cannot signal to the part of the body that those spinal cord nerves lead, thus leaving a person paralyzed. This study seeks to reconnect all of those nerves so that muscles in the body can move as the brain intends them to.
But will this treatment work on people? Will it help those who are paraplegic and quadriplegic, and in search of answers?
Locomotive training, as was used here, is very popular in Europe at the moment. It is a rehabilitation technique in which people with spinal cord injuries are secured into a harness as physical therapists move their legs in a walking motion. Locomotor training helps with respiration, bladder function, blood sugar levels and circulation. It currently used to help stop skin problems that usually come with living with paralysis.
Studies conducted prior to this one have shown that the part of the nervous system centered in the spinal cord has the ability to create rhythmic activity that can allow steps to be taken by directing leg muscles properly. Using the exact electrical input, the rats were able to walk without using their brain because their nerves had learned to process the sensory information of putting one foot in front of the other on their own.
However, the truth of the matter remains to be seen. In the past, studies such as these have proven to work on lab rats, but failed to retain any success when administered to humans. It is a step in the right direction, but not a solution to paralysis in its entirety. Nonetheless, the results of this study indicate advancements are being made, that science is coming closer and closer to uncovering a cure. Maybe paralysis will soon be only a temporary condition that affects someone for just a few months.
If you or a loved one have suffered a spinal cord injury that has resulted in paralysis, we urge you to contact our bilingual offices as soon as possible following the accident at 1-858-551-2090 or please click here for a free consultation with an experienced paralysis attorney. We handle all cases on a contingency fee basis, which means that you do not pay anything until we recover money on your behalf.
SENIOR PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY & FIRM FOUNDER
Michael Pines is a former insurance company attorney who graduated from the University of California Hastings College of the Law in 1987. While he was an insurance attorney, he learned from behind the scenes how insurance companies work and how they decide how much to pay injured people. Now that he works against insurance companies, Michael’s inside knowledge has resulted in significant benefits to his clients injured in car accidents. Learn more about Michael Pines