Spinal Cord Stimulation for Functional Recovery in Humans With Tetraplegia
VA Office of Research and Development
Summary
In support of the long-term goal of developing new strategies to increase limb function after SCI, the objectives of this proposal are to: 1) Examine the behavioral and physiological effects of TESS on upper-limb muscles after cervical SCI; and 2) Maximize the recovery of reaching and grasping potential by using tailored TESS in a task-specific manner with motor training. Veterans with cervical spinal injuries and healthy volunteers will be recruited for this study.
Description
Current studies demonstrate that electrical spinal stimulation, either invasive or noninvasive, can play an important role in rehabilitation strategies aimed at improving limb function in humans with SCI (Taccola et al., 2018). Among current stimulation strategies, one of the most promising candidates to emerge in recent years is transcutaneous electrical spinal stimulation (TESS). TESS is a noninvasive technique that can be tailored to the needs of each individual, where several segments of the spinal cord can be stimulated at the same time, and delivery can be programed to interact with a re…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 18–70 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Yes
Inclusion Criteria: Inclusion criteria for SCI: * Male and female Veterans between 18-70 years * Chronic SCI (1 year of injury) * Cervical injury at C8 or above - damage between cervical spinal segments will be confirmed using MRI \[preliminary data (Benavides et al., 2020) and analysis of MRIs in \~100 participants with cervical SCI confirm that the investigators can meet our recruitment goals. Note that most SCI in humans damage several spinal cord segments * Verification of damage to cervical spinal segments will ensure that TESS electrodes will target the injured spinal cord (Benavide…
Interventions
- DeviceTESS
Small stimulation pulses will be given to the spine at C5-6 in a non invasive manner.
- OtherTraining
The participant will be instructed to do repetitive motor movements with their arm or hand.
- OtherMotor Task
Participants will be asked to perform specific motor tasks or movements with their fingers, hands, and arms.
- Devicesham-TESS
Small sham stimulation pulses will be given to the spine at C5-6 in a non invasive manner.
Locations (2)
- Shirley Ryan AbilityLabChicago, Illinois
- Edward Hines Jr. VA Hospital, Hines, ILHines, Illinois