Patients with Parkinson's disease have restored movement



[ad_1]

Multimedia playback is not supported on your device

Legend of the mediaGail Jardine: "I can walk, I can turn around … it really helped me"

Canadian researchers have developed a treatment that has restored the movement of patients with chronic Parkinson's disease.

Patients previously confined to their homes are now able to walk more freely as a result of electrical stimulation of their spines.

A quarter of patients have difficulty walking as the disease progresses, and often freeze on site and fall.

Parkinson UK praised its potential impact on an aspect of the disease where there is currently no cure.

Professor Mandar Jog, of the University of Western London, Ontario, told BBC News that the magnitude of the benefits for patients of his new treatment was "beyond his wildest dreams" .

Copyright of the image
AFP

Legend

Scientists monitor the progress of their patients by using sensors on a specially designed combination.

"Most of our patients have been suffering from the disease for 15 years and have not been walking with confidence for many years," he said.

"For them, going from home, with the risk of falling, going to the mall and having a vacation is remarkable."

Normal walking means that the brain sends instructions to the legs for them to move. It then receives the signals when the movement is complete before sending instructions for the next step.

Copyright of the image
BBC News / Western University

Legend

The parts of the brain involved in the movement (red on the scan on the left) do not work properly, but three months after the start of the trial, these areas are working now.

Professor Jog thinks that Parkinson's disease reduces the signals that come back to the brain – breaking the loop and freezing the patient.

The implant developed by his team reinforces this signal, allowing the patient to walk normally.

However, Professor Jog was surprised to see that the treatment was durable and worked even when the implant was turned off.

He thinks that the electrical stimulus awakens the feedback mechanism of the legs to the brain damaged by the disease.

"It's a completely different rehab therapy," he said. "We had thought that movement problems occurred in patients with Parkinson's because the signals from the brain to the legs did not pass.

"But it seems to be the signals coming back to the brain that are degrading."

Walks in the countryside

Brain tests have shown that before patients receive electrical treatment, the areas that control the movement do not work properly. But a few months after the start of treatment, these areas have been restored.

Gail Jardine, 66, is one of the patients who benefited from the treatment.

Before receiving the implant two months ago, Gail continued to freeze, and she would fall two or three times a day.

She lost confidence in herself and stopped walking in the countryside in Kitchener, Ontario – which she loved to do with her husband, Stan.

Now she can walk with Stan in the park for the first time in over two years.

"I can walk a lot better," she says. "I have not fallen since the start of treatment, it has given me more confidence and I look forward to doing more walks with Stan and maybe even going there." only".

Copyright of the image
Guy Alden

Legend

Guy Alden had the habit of using a wheelchair, but after his treatment, he spent his first vacation in seven years with his wife Barb.

Guy Alden, 70, deacon of a Catholic church in London, Ontario, is another recipient. He was forced to retire in 2012 because of his Parkinson's disease.

His biggest regret was that it reduced his work in the community, like his visits to prison.

"I had a lot of cold when I was in a crowd or I was crossing a threshold in a mall.Everyone was looking at me.It was very embarrassing," he said. -he says.

"Now I can walk in the crowd.My wife and I even went on vacation to Maui and I needed to use my wheelchair at no time.There were a lot of narrow roads and a lot of (slopes) and I did it all pretty well. "

Dr. Beckie Port, head of research at Parkinson & # 39; s UK, said: "The results of this small-scale pilot study are very promising and the therapy certainly deserves further investigation.

"If future studies show the same level of promise, it could potentially significantly improve the quality of life, giving people with Parkinson's the freedom to do their daily activities."

Follow Pallab on Twitter

[ad_2]

Source link