Critical Steps Towards a Cure for Spinal Cord Injuries
Robotic Arm
A robotic arm controlled by an iPhone and iPad that will help spinal cord injury patient’s move and grip objects is being tested in Melbourne.
Drug Trial
A new Australian drug aiming to prevent loss of nerve tissue and promote repair after injury will enter human trials within 12 months.
Hands On
A headset that delivers electrical stimulation to hand muscles allowing people to use their hand is being tested by Melbourne University and Austin Health.
Sleep
Austin Health is leading an international trial to see if they can reduce the impact of sleep apnea and boost brain power using a sleep mask and sun hormone pills.
Cycling
Electrical stimulation to the muscles of the thigh that enables them to cycle on a bike is being used to see if it can stop muscle wastage and improve general health.
Full Body Work Out
Giving patients with spinal cord injuries full body exercise on a treadmill and with electrical stimulation-assisted cycling to see if it can improve their function.
Nerve Transplant Surgery
The Victorian Spinal Cord Service is offering nerve transfer surgery to patients with tetraplegia for upper limb reanimation. The surgery can lead to increased reach, grasp and release and increased independence for patients. A trial with the University of Melbourne will work out which patients are eligible for the surgery, optimal surgery timing and a cost-benefit analysis.
Gym Training
A program that teaches fitness trainers how to cater for spinal cord injury patients has been developed to try to improve their access to community gyms. A full assessment is underway, but preliminary results show it is helping overcome barriers and improving the physical health of patients.
Music Therapy
Singing classes were trialled to boost people with quadriplegia’s ability to breath and project their voice. Their main breathing muscles do not work, putting them at risk of chest infections and pneumonia and making it hard to heard in loud environments. The trial found that it not only boosted their voice projection, there were trends to show that it could help breathing and it also was a helpful social outlet. University of Melbourne and Austin Health Dr Jeanette Tamplin hopes to conduct a larger trial using online classes to overcome transport barriers for patients.
Employment
There are still hurdles to overcome for people with spinal cord injuries to return to work, but Austin Health and LaTrobe University’s Gilliean. Hilton is hoping to improve this with two research projects to assess the current services provided to Victorian patients and an in-depth study of 30 people with quadriplegia to assess their experience of seeking, gaining and maintaining employment.
Bowel
Melbourne University and Austin Health is about to start clinical trials of a drug to help spinal cord injury patients get better control of their bowel functions.
Cooling
Spinal cord injury patients will be cooled temporarily so they have more time to get spinal cord decompression surgery. The trial, led by the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health neurologist Dr Peter Batchelor, will involve paramedics cooling patients by two degrees within two hours of their injury.Dr Peter Batchelor, will involve paramedics cooling patients by two degrees within two hours of their injury.
Blood Pressure
A 24-hour study revealed that spinal cord injury patients have a reversal of blood pressure- it’s too high at night and dangerously low during the day.They are now giving people with quadriplegia drugs to raise their blood pressure during the day and trying to reduce the high blood pressure overnight.
Bionic Spine
Royal Melbourne Hospital and University of Melbourne have begun preclinical trials of a device that allows spinal cord injury patients to control a robotic limb using an implant that decodes brain activity signals responsible for limb movement.
