A paralysed man is being helped to stand and move his limbs with the aid of a pioneering new stimulating electrode array implanted in his spinal cord.

The stainless steel electrodes, which are covered in platinum, stimulate neurons directly in the subject's lower spinal cord to allow movement.

Published in the Lancet, the research was carried out by a team of scientists from the University of California, Los Angeles, the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), and the University of Louisville.

Instead of bypassing the man's nervous system to directly stimulate the leg muscles, the approach takes advantage of the "inherent control circuitry" of the lower spinal cord to allow movement, the researchers explained.

The patient, a 25-year-old former athlete who was completely paralysed below the chest in a hit-and-run accident 2006, was also able to recover some automatic functions such as bowel and bladder control.

Joel Burdick, a professor of mechanical engineering and bioengineering at Caltech, said the results of the study "far exceeded" the team's expectations.

"This is a significant breakthrough," explained Susan Harkema of University of Louisville, the lead author of the paper in the Lancet.

"It opens up a huge potential to improve the daily functioning of individuals."

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Caltech Research Helps Paraplegic Man Stand and Move Legs Voluntarily (19/05/11) 

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