PepiHax t1_j9dc0kw wrote on February 21, 2023 at 2:15 AM

Reply to comment by drkgodess in Stroke survivor moves her hand for first time in a decade after groundbreaking treatment by TheTelegraph

Okay I guess the summary is fine, but it doesn't say why they are the first

Electrical stimulation of the spinal cord is old tech, it even resulted in the orgasm button.

drkgodess t1_j9dedql wrote on February 21, 2023 at 2:33 AM

The technology has never been applied in this specific way.

PepiHax t1_j9dh4hc wrote on February 21, 2023 at 2:54 AM

Okay, so how does it differ from this review from 2020 where they found 13 other articles about spinal cord stimulation? https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/1545968319893298

drkgodess t1_j9dj0h8 wrote on February 21, 2023 at 3:09 AM

Well, those studies were done with people who had spinal cord injuries, not strokes, and the electrodes were transcutaneous (i.e. outside of the body), not implanted in the spinal cord. This study likely built on those findings, though.

magenk t1_j9e6pd6 wrote on February 21, 2023 at 7:05 AM

It may not be super cutting edge tech, but it's far from perfected. There are still lots of potential serious complications from this "minimally invasive" procedure.

While the risks may be worth it for many, I don't think minimizing the risks is very responsible. The nervous system is very complex and for all of our knowledge, we're still stabbing in the dark a lot of the time.