Terry Using Environmental Control

Terry uses an Environmental Control system to control equipment in his home to enable him to be as independent as possible. Continue Reading »

Nominate someone for the SCI Hall of Fame! Deadline Aug.15

Nominations for the 2007 Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) Hall of Fame are officially open!

Anyone can nominate candidates in any of 14 categories by completing the Online Nomination Form http://www.spinalcord.org/) on or before 5 pm Eastern Time on August 15.

Formed by NSCIA in 2005, the SCI Hall of Fame was created to celebrate and honor individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions to quality of life and advancements toward a better future for all individuals with spinal cord injury. Continue Reading »

Promise Shown For Curing Injured Spinal Cord By Radiation Therapy Combined With Microsurgery

Research on rats with crushed spinal cords, similar to human injury, reveals that treatment soon after injury combining radiation therapy to destroy harmful cells and microsurgery to drain excess fluids significantly increases the body’s ability to repair the injured cord leading to permanent recovery from injury, according to the study published in the July 18 peer-reviewed journal PLoS ONE. Since repair of damaged cord directly correlates with prevention of paralysis, this research demonstrates that conventional clinical procedures hold promise for preventing paralysis from spinal cord injuries.

Currently there is no cure for human spinal cord injury. Treatment after injury is largely limited to steroids administered to prevent further deterioration. Continue Reading »

Radiation therapy combined with microsurgery shows promise for curing injured spinal cord

Research on rats with crushed spinal cords, similar to human injury, reveals that treatment soon after injury combining radiation therapy to destroy harmful cells and microsurgery to drain excess fluids significantly increases the body’s ability to repair the injured cord leading to permanent recovery from injury, according to the study published in the July 18 peer-reviewed journal PLoS ONE. Since repair of damaged cord directly correlates with prevention of paralysis, this research demonstrates that conventional clinical procedures hold promise for preventing paralysis from spinal cord injuries.

Currently there is no cure for human spinal cord injury. Treatment after injury is largely limited to steroids administered to prevent further deterioration. “This research opens the door to developing a clinical protocol for curing human spinal cord injuries using conventional therapies,” said lead researcher Nurit Kalderon, Ph.D. Conducted at Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research in New York City, the research was supported by a grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). Continue Reading »

First steps on a long road

One evening this March, at a military hospital in northeast China, Paraplegic Jason McCue moved his legs.

It happened when the 31-year-old Calgarian was watching a movie with his girlfriend and her cousin, the three of them lying on two beds they had pushed together in his little hospital room.

The movement was just a slight shift, from left to right.

McCue, who hadn’t even felt a sensation in his legs since he broke his back in a mountain biking accident nearly three years earlier, concentrated. Continue Reading »

Clinical Trial Suggests Bone Marrow Stem Cells Are Useful For Spinal Cord Injury

PrimeCell™ Therapeutics LLC recently announced that it provided research support and pre-clinical studies for a clinical trial to assess the safety, feasibility and efficacy of implanting autologous bone marrow stem cells into spinal cord injury (SCI) patients.

Dr. Luis Geffner presented a preliminary report at the 13th Annual Meeting of the International Society for Cellular Therapy, held here June 24-27. From May 2006 to January 2007, 25 patients with SCI were treated at Luis Vernaza Hospital in Guayaquil, Ecuador. They were treated with autologous bone marrow stem cells – meaning the cells were extracted from the patients’ own bone marrow. Continue Reading »

Trager family donates $1M to Frazier Rehab Institute

Business First of Louisville

Jewish Hospital & St. Mary’s HealthCare Inc.’s Frazier Rehab Institute has received a $1 million gift from the Bernard and Jean Trager family to support Frazier’s recently expanded downtown facility.

The Tragers, founders of Republic Bank & Trust Co., donated the money in honor of their children and grandchildren, according to a news release. Continue Reading »

Stem cells made from eggs, not embryos

NEW YORK –Scientists say they’ve created embryonic stem cells by stimulating unfertilized eggs, a significant step toward producing transplant tissue that’s genetically matched to women.

The advance suggests that someday, a woman who wants a transplant to treat a condition like diabetes or a spinal cord injury could provide eggs to a lab, which in turn could create tissue that her body wouldn’t reject.

Ethicists disagreed on whether the strategy would avoid the long-standing ethical objections to creating embryonic stem cells by other means. Continue Reading »

Clinical Trial Suggests Bone Marrow Stem Cells Are Useful for Spinal Cord Injury

PrimeCell(TM) Therapeutics LLC today announced that it provided research support and pre-clinical studies for a clinical trial to assess the safety, feasibility and efficacy of implanting autologous bone marrow stem cells into spinal cord injury (SCI) patients.

Dr. Luis Geffner presented a preliminary report at the 13th Annual Meeting of the International Society for Cellular Therapy, held here June 24-27. From May 2006 to January 2007, 25 patients with SCI were treated at Luis Vernaza Hospital in Guayaquil, Ecuador. They were treated with autologous bone marrow stem cells – meaning the cells were extracted from the patients’ own bone marrow. Continue Reading »

VA Boosts Services and Research in Spinal Cord Injury

(Media-Newswire.com) – MILWAUKEE – During a ground-breaking ceremony today for a world-class facility for spinal cord injuries, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Jim Nicholson committed the Department of Veterans Affairs ( VA ) to expand programs and open new facilities for seriously disabled veterans with spinal cord injuries.

“VA’s health care facilities provide world-class health care for America’s veterans,” said Nicholson. “Especially for our most seriously disabled veterans, VA is committed to continuing its role as a world leader in treatment and research.” Continue Reading »