In a new clinical study, researchers from the Texas Biomedical Device Center (TxBDC) demonstrated unprecedented rates of recovery for spinal cord injuries. In this study, individuals with incomplete spinal cord injury safely received a combination of stimulation of a nerve in the neck with progressive, individualised rehabilitation. This approach, called closed-loop vagus nerve stimulation (CLV), produced meaningful improvements in arm and hand function in these individuals.
This approach is based on over a decade of neuroscience and bioengineering efforts by investigators at The University of Texas at Dallas. The therapy uses electrical pulses sent to the brain via a tiny device implanted in the neck and timed to occur during rehabilitative exercises. Previous work by researchers has demonstrated that stimulating the vagus nerve during physical therapy can rewire areas of the brain damaged by stroke and lead to improved recovery.
The trial involved 19 participants with chronic, incomplete cervical spinal cord injury. Each person performed 12 weeks of therapy, playing simple video games to trigger specific upper-limb movements. The implant was activated upon successful movements, resulting in significant benefits for arm and hand strength.
The participants ranged in age from 21 to 65 and were from one to 45 years post-injury. Neither of those factors, nor the severity of the impairment in those with any hand movement, influenced the degree of response to treatment.
The newest generation of the implantable CLV device, designed by Rennaker, is approximately 50 times smaller than their version from three years ago. It does not prevent patients from receiving MRIs, CT scans or ultrasounds.