Transcutaneous Electrical Spinal Cord Stimulation to Promote Recovery in Chronic Spinal Cord Injury.
Candace Tefertiller, Meghan Rozwod, Eric VandeGriend and 3 others
PMID 36004322WHAT IT FOUND
Seven people with chronic spinal cord injury who had plateaued after intensive outpatient therapy completed training with electrical spinal cord stimulation without serious adverse events.
Many showed changes in strength, sensation, or walking tests, but it was a small case series.
Key findings
01No serious adverse events occurred, and all adverse events were minor skin issues that resolved within 24 to 48 hours and did not prevent training.
02Every participant with complete data improved on the CUE-T upper extremity function test, the nine-hole peg test, the 10-meter walk test, and the 6-minute walk test, while upper and lower extremity motor change scores ranged from an 11-point increase to a 3-point decrease.
03Sensation improved in five participants, with one showing a 43-point change.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study included only seven participants and the authors did not test statistical significance, so the results are exploratory. It was a case series, so it cannot show whether changes were due to the stimulation, the training, or time. The number of sessions varied from 20 to 80, so the dose was not standardized. Participants had different injury levels and injury severity categories, which makes it hard to generalise the findings. Voluntary lower extremity activation during stimulation was observed but not quantified with a specific outcome measure.
Declared interests
The authors declared no commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. One author was supported by an NIH training award. The stimulation device used was from NeuroRecovery Technologies Inc.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the improvements as proof that electrical spinal cord stimulation caused recovery. Participants received stimulation together with upper extremity functional task training and lower extremity standing and stepping training, and the study was a case series.