Electro-stimulation treatment helps patients with spinal-cord injuries

A team of Swiss and Canadian scientists have developed a targeted electrical stimulation treatment for patients with spinal-cord injuries that allows them to regain control of their blood pressure. Building on earlier research that uses targeted electrical stimulation of the spinal cord via a wireless implant to help paraplegics walk again, scientists from the federal technology institute in Lausanne (EPFL) and the University of Calgary carried out experiments to deliver electrical stimulation in the region containing the neural circuits that regulate blood pressure. Spinal cord injuries result in unstable blood pressure, which can reduce quality of life and be life-threatening. Unfortunately, there are no effective therapies for unstable blood pressure after spinal-cord injuries. During their experiments, the team delivered electrical stimulations that were adapted in real-time based on measurements taken by a blood-pressure monitor implanted in an artery. This monitor measures...