Promising results shown in study on limb paralysis treatment

Astroke left Heather Rendulic with little use of her left hand and arm.

“I live one-handed in a twohanded world and you don’t realize how many things you need two hands for until you only have one good one,” she said.

So Rendulic volunteered for a first-of-its-kind experiment: Researchers implanted a device that zaps her spinal cord in spots that control hand and arm motion. When they switched it on, she could grasp and manipulate objects — moving a soup can and, by the end of the four-week study, cutting her own steak.

It’s not a cure — the improvements ended after scientists removed the temporary implant — and the pilot study included only Rendulic and one other stroke survivor. But the preliminary results, published Monday, mark a step toward one day restoring mobility for this common type of paralysis.

“They’re not just getting flickers of movement. They’re getting something important,”said

Dr. Jason Carmel, a Columbia University neurologist who wasn’t involved with the experiment.

Researchers turned to implants the size of spaghetti strands that already are used to stimulate the spine for pain treatment.

Rendulic and a second, more severely impaired volunteer could move better as soon as the stimulator was switched on — and by the study’s end showed improved muscle strength, dexterity and range of motion, researchers reported Monday in the journal Nature Medicine.

While bigger and longer studies are needed, the results “are really promising,” said Mayo Clinic assistant professor Peter Grahn.