Restoration of Over-Ground Walking via Non-Invasive Neuromodulation Therapy: A Single-Case Study

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Alam, Monzurul
Ling, Yan To
Rahman, Md Akhlasur
Wong, Arnold Yu Lok
Zhong, Hui
Edgerton, V Reggie
Zheng, Yong-Ping
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2023
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Abstract

Spinal cord injuries (SCI) can result in sensory and motor dysfunctions, which were long considered permanent. Recent advancement in electrical neuromodulation has been proven to restore sensorimotor function in people with SCI. These stimulation protocols, however, were mostly invasive, expensive, and difficult to implement. In this study, transcutaneous electrical stimulation (tES) was used to restore over-ground walking of an individual with 21 years of chronic paralysis from a cervical SCI. After a total of 66 weeks of rehabilitation training with tES, which included standing, functional reaching, reclined sit-up, treadmill walking, and active biking, significant improvement in lower-limb volitional movements and overall light touch sensation were shown as measured by the International Standards for Neurological Classification of Spinal Cord Injury (ISNCSCI) score. By the end of the study, the participant could walk in a 4-m walking test with the aid of a walking frame and ankle–foot orthoses. The successful sensorimotor recovery of our study participant sheds light on the future of non-invasive neuromodulation treatment for SCI paralysis.

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Journal of Clinical Medicine

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12

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23

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© 2023 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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Biomedical engineering

Neurology and neuromuscular diseases

Biomedical and clinical sciences

chronic spinal cord injury

neuromodulation

over-ground walking

sensorimotor rehabilitation

transcutaneous electrical stimulation

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Alam, M; Ling, YT; Rahman, MA; Wong, AYL; Zhong, H; Edgerton, VR; Zheng, Y-P, Restoration of Over-Ground Walking via Non-Invasive Neuromodulation Therapy: A Single-Case Study, Journal of Clinical Medicine, 2023, 12 (23), pp. 7362

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