Spinal Cord Implants Could Help Paralysed People to Walk

Swiss researchers have developed a flexible implant covered in electrodes that can imitate the electrical impulses of a healthy spinal cord, giving new hope of mobility to sufferers of paralysis.

The e-Dura implant combines platinum and silicon microbeads, cracked gold electronic tracks, and fluidic microchannels that can mimic a functional spinal nervous system, carrying motor signals from the brain to the rest of the body. In lab tests, paralysed rats fitted with an e-Dura implant were able to walk again within two weeks.

Though it will be a while until the e-Dura is tested on humans, the developers hope that it will be able to tackle a multitude of spinal cord-related conditions, including epilepsy and Parkinson’s disease, plus reduce chronic pain.

Source: Engadget