Implant Helps Patients Walk Again

A small Swiss study has accomplished the incredible: After electrical stimulation of the spinal cord, three men paralyzed from the waist down following a motorcycle accident were able to stand, walk, swim, and cycle again. The patients had a device surgically implanted that sends electrical stimulation into the spinal cord. Within days, each participant could take as many as 300 steps using a walker for support—and even farther with practice. If similar, large-scale trials underway in the United States and Europe are successful, the device could be permanently implanted into paralyzed patients, who would use their smartphones to adjust the level of stimulation needed for various activities.