People who have had a stroke can help them return to their daily tasks with ease.
About three-quarters of people who have a stroke lose half of their body movement, which has serious consequences for their daily life.
But electrical stimulation of the spinal cord helped one woman, Heather Rendulic, eat with a knife and fork for the first time in nearly a decade.
Unable to fully close her left hand, the technology helped her grab a fork, spear a steak, cut it with her right hand and bring the fork to her mouth to eat.
The breakthrough came in a study of two women who had suffered a stroke.
Electrical spinal cord stimulation helped one woman, Heather Rendulic (hand image), eat with a knife and fork for the first time in nearly a decade
Previously unable to fully cover her left hand, the technology helped Ms Rendulic (pictured) grasp a fork, spear a steak, cut it with her right hand and use the fork to eat to keep your mouth shut
The results show that Ms. Rendulic has a 40 percent improvement in grip after being zapped with small, continuous pulses of electricity.
A second woman, aged 47, who was weaker after suffering a stroke, saw her grip strength more than double.
Electrical stimulation has traditionally been used primarily to help people with spinal cord injuries regain their mobility.
There has been some limited evidence that it can also help people who have had a stroke, but researchers say they have now worked out the exact location and programming for the electrodes that can produce consistent results.
The key to therapy is stimulation of nerves called “dorsal roots” at the top of the spinal cord, which can activate muscles in the arms and hands to respond to faint signals from the brain.
Ms Rendulic, who suffered five strokes in 11 months due to a burst blood vessel in her brain, which happened in 2011, was able to pick up a soup can and unlock a padlock.
She had a lab of scientists in tears after regaining movement in her left hand within minutes of turning on the stimulation.
Dr. Marco Capogrosso, senior author of the study, from the University of Pittsburgh, said: “The first day with the first patient, when she opened her hand after nine years, was a particularly intense moment because she clearly started crying and we all started to cry.
“The whole lab was crying—I mean, we didn’t really expect it to happen so quickly.”
Speaking of the results, Ms Rendulic, a human resources manager who had to relearn how to walk after her first stroke, said: “It’s just amazing because I can’t move my arm and hand like I haven’t in over a decade did not. .’
The study is still in its early stages and has only involved two people so far, making it difficult to determine how safe and effective the therapy would be if it were widely used.
To receive the stimulation, Ms Rendulic and a second woman, aged 47, needed surgery to implant two wires with electrodes extending from the neck to the top of the ribs.
The key to therapy is stimulation of nerves called “dorsal roots” at the top of the spinal cord (shown in scan), which can activate muscles in the arms and hands to respond to faint signals from the brain
Ms Rendulic, who suffered five strokes in 11 months due to a burst blood vessel in her brain in 2011, was able to pick up a can of soup (pictured) and unlock a padlock
But over 29 days of stimulation, both women improved their skills.
Ms. Rendulic, who was less weak from her stroke on the one hand, saw better results than the other volunteer whose stroke occurred three years before the study.
She was able to draw a spiral more accurately by opening her hand fully and raising her arm directly above her head, where before she could only raise it to shoulder height.
The effects, reported in the journal Nature Medicine, lasted longer than expected—even after the stimulation was turned off.
Ms Rendulic continued to perform significantly better than before the study on an arm and hand function test.
Experts believe the electrical stimulation can help rewire the brain to move again, which can aid in rehabilitation.
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Crystal Leahy is an author and health journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a background in health and wellness, Crystal has a passion for helping people live their best lives through healthy habits and lifestyles.
