Category Archives: Spinal Cord Injury Treatment

RESEARCHERS in Scotland are leading the drive to develop a new generation of multiple sclerosis drugs designed to reverse symptoms in patients with more advanced disability. The only MS drugs currently available treat the earlier, inflammatory stages of the disease and cannot repair the nerve damage which causes problems with speech and mobility. However, scientists in Edinburgh and Glasgow are now leading projects funded by MS Society Scotland which they hope will eventually produce treatments which can repair myelin - the protective sheath around nerve cells which is destroyed in MS. Dr Anna Williams, a neurologist at Edinburgh University's Centre for Regenerative Medicine, said: "Myelin is like the insulation on wires - it's there to make your nerves conduct electricity better. If it comes off, your nerves don't conduct electricity well so you might want to move your leg but find it more difficult to do so because the electrical impulse isn't being transmitted properly from the brain to the muscle. In the longer term if the myelin isn't there then the nerve itself dies and people get stuck with disability. "What we want to do is persuade the brain to put the myelin back on these nerves and stop … Continue reading →

Please enable Javascript to watch this video GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- One of the survivors of the deadly Kalamazoo bike crash tragedyis set to be one of the thousands of bicyclists participating in the Gran Fondo bike event Saturday in Grand Rapids. Paul Gobble suffered from a head injury, spinal cord damage, and a fractured fibula in the crash last Junewhen an erratic driver drove into the group of bicyclists called 'Chain Gang' killing five people. Since that crash Gobble has been working with professionals at Mary Free Bed Hospital to recover. It will mark completion of a full circle for me, Paul said. Im looking forward to that ride. The 80 mile ride today will be his first. Ive never done an 80-mile ride before, so Im a little nervous about it, Gobble said. But what better way to tackle the challenge than to do it alongside your very own Mary Free Bed physical therapist? I just cant say enough about how thankful I am for Mary Free Bed. He says if there is one thing he wants people to know it`s to wear a helmet when riding your bike. Even if you are a very safe rider and … Continue reading →

UT Health San Antonio has entered into a licensing agreement with a Chinese pharmaceutical company that translates into millions of dollars. Its the most financially significant deal of its kind in the universitys history. In a lab at UT Health San Antonio, scientists are working on new therapies for devastating medical conditions -- specifically spinal cord injuries and breast cancer that has spread to the bone. Now, that promising research is going global. The university signed two licensing agreements with CSPS Pharmaceutical Group, one of the top therapeutic brands in China. A subsidiary, Alamab, will locate in San Antonio, building on biologic therapies targeting these bone-related health issues. "These biologics will be developed into novel, first in class therapies," explained UT Health San Antonio President William Henrich, MD. "Should these agents prove successful, then the prospect of mitigating or even curing these debilitating conditions becomes possible." UT Regent Board Member Rad Weaver says discoveries made in labs here are grabbing national and international attention. "The UT System ranks eighth in patents issued in 2016," Weaver said. "Of the 162 patents granted last year, ten were here at UT Health San Antonio." Bioscience start-up Alamab is paying an initial $4.5 million … Continue reading →

N.Y. Senate approves medical marijuana as PTSD treatment NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Updated: Tuesday, June 20, 2017, 3:56 PM ALBANY The GOP-controlled state Senate on Tuesday easily approved legislation that allows medical marijuana to be used to treat post-traumatic stress disorder. Patients in New York State should have the option to try what works for them, Sen. Diane Savino (D-Staten Island), the bill's sponsor, told the The Daily News. The Senate voted 50-13 in favor of the measure despite arguments from some critics, including Sen. Thomas Croci, (R-Suffolk County), chair of the Senates veterans committee, that there was not enough evidence that medical marijuana was effective in treating PTSD. I think we are premature, Crocci said during the debate. Medical marijuana could help vets: VA secretary The Senates approval means the bill now heads to Gov. Cuomos desk, where its fate is uncertain. Rich Azzopardi, a spokesman for the governor, said Cuomo will review the legislation. The Democrat-controlled Assembly passed the measure earlier this year and Savino, with the backing of veterans' advocates, had been pressing the Senate to follow suit. "I think it is time that we start taking care of the people that have PTSD," Bob Becker, legislative … Continue reading →

Shown here is the nervous system, containing the brain, spinal cord and peripheral nerves. A spinal cord injury (SCI) is damage to any part of the spinal cord, the bundle of nerves that runs from the brain down the vertebral column, or disease. "Spinal cord injury is basically any trauma to thespinal cordthat interrupts the flow of [electrical] information from the brain to wherever the nerves are going," said Dr. Salvatore Insinga,chief of neurosurgery at Southside Hospital in Bay Shore, New York. The injury can prevent motor signals from reaching the muscles, resulting in paralysis, or sensory information from reaching the brain. "Its a two-way conduit," Insinga told Live Science. The occurrence of spinal cord injury among survivors is about 40 cases per million in the United States, or about 12,000 new cases per year, according to a 2013 report by the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center (NSCISC). An estimated 273,000 people are living with spinal cord injury in the United States, in a range from 238,000 to 332,000. About 80 percent of spinal cord injuries reported to the national database happen in men. Nearly half of all injuries occur in young people between the ages of 16 and … Continue reading →

James C. Stevens has always been drawn to challenging cases. From the time Stevens was a high school student working as an emergency room orderly, the local neurologist felt drawn to patients with injuries that affected the brain, spine or nervous system. The son of a dentist father and schoolteacher mother, Stevens believed the field could keep him interested for a lifetime because there was so much doctors didn't know in the 1980s, when he was attending medical school at Indiana University. And he was right. Almost 30 years afterhe began practice, Dr. Stevens remains fascinated by neurology. That curiosity and dedication helped propel him to being named president-elect of the American Academy of Neurology, a professional group with about 32,000 members. Stevens will serve a two-year term before taking the presidency for the following two years. He will be the organization's 36th president, its first from Indiana. Catherine Rydell, the academy's executive director and CEO, said Steven's outstanding contributions to the organization have included leading its strategic planning process and contributing to more than 80 neurological clinical trials as participant, co-author or principal investigator. His dedication and wealth of leadership experience will continue to advance our growing organization, she … Continue reading →

Family and neighbors say William Howard was never aggressive and always offered to help anyone who needed it. But in November, Howard was accused in a brutal attack against his wife of 47 years. She was left with multiple stab wounds and told deputies she didnt understand why he attacked her. They were in love. She knew he loved her very much. We all dont understand. It just left us all completely baffled, said Howards brother, Waverly Howard, 68. And now well never get the chance to understand what happened. Thats because three days after Howard, 75, was booked on an aggravated battery charge in the Orange County Jail, he was found unresponsive in his cell and later pronounced dead, documents show. Correctional officers at the jail did a take-down on Howard when he was being moved to a psychiatric observation cell, which caused a neck fracture and his death, according to a 20-page review from the Orange County Sheriffs Office and an autopsy report. The force was used after he didnt cooperate as officers tried to move him to another cell, said Tracy Zampaglione, a spokeswoman for the jail. Several officers are under internal investigation in the incident and … Continue reading →

June 15, 2017 by Emil Venere People with spinal cord injuries may suffer neuropathic pain in various parts of the body. Credit: Purdue University photo/Michel Schweinsberg Researchers have identified a key component in cigarette smoke that worsens pain in people with spinal cord injury, suggesting that a critical element within tobacco is responsible for such pain-inducing effects. "Findings support anecdotal information suggesting that smoking increases pain in patients with spinal cord injuries," said Riyi Shi (pronounced Ree Shee), a professor of neuroscience and biomedical engineering in Purdue University's Department of Basic Medical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine and Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering. "This neuropathic pain could be felt in the leg and upper extremities, or in any part of the body." A toxin from cigarette smoke has been shown to cause pain in animals with spinal cord injuries. The same toxin is known to activate pain sensors in nerve fibers. The research showed that a neurotoxin called acrolein contained in cigarette smoke intensified neuropathic pain after spinal cord injuries in rats. Acrolein is known to worsen pain by activating and causing a proliferation of pain receptors called TRPA1, or transient receptor potential ankyrin-1, found in nerve fibers. The findings … Continue reading →

Neuroscientists at the University of Alberta recently made significant discoveries about spinal injuries which could lead to new treatment options. Specifically, the research focused on the role blood flow and oxygen play in motor function post-injury. Healthcare workers and spinal cord injury lawyers are understandably excited about the potential of this new information. The biggest finding is really that we found that blood vessels, these capillaries, are controlled by cells that nobody really knew anything about, Karim Fouad, Canada Research Chair in spinal cord injury and a co-author of the study told the Edmonton Journal. Just that knowledge opens so many windows, so many opportunities for treatments of various diseases and injuries of the brain and spinal cord. Previous research suggested that limited post-injury blood flow to the spinal cord was a temporary problem; the University of Alberta team believes they have evidence to the contrary and have identified pericytes, tiny cells that wrap around blood vessels, as the source of this issue. It turns out the blood flow below a spinal cord injury the whole length of the spinal cord below an injury is permanently impaired because of these pericytes excessively contracting, explained the studys co-senior author, David Bennett. … Continue reading →

Lower back pain is one of the most common complaints, and can be caused by everything from strained muscles to bulging discs. Lower-back pain, or pain in the part of the back between the ribs and the legs, is one of the most common complaints of discomfort. It is the most common cause of job-related disability and a major reason for missed work. While most back twinges go away on their own after a few days, many people suffer from chronic back pain. About 80 percent of people in the United States experience at least one bout of lower-back pain in their lives, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. The back can get out of whack very easily because it supports most of the body's weight. People ages 30 to 50 tend to be more likely to suffer from back pain, possibly because they spend large amounts of their day sitting, with the occasional too-vigorous workout that can cause injury. Most back pain is one of four types, said Dr. Christopher Maher, director of the musculoskeletal division at the George Institute for Global Health at the University of Sydney in Australia. One form of back pain, … Continue reading →