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An Ohio company, Synapse Biomedical, created a novel device designed to stimulate natural breathing processes in patients suffering from decreased and degenerating respiration due to upper spinal cord injuries. Dr. Michael DiMaio of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center told EurekAlert that, “Patients who have high-level spinal-cord injuries are unable to breathe efficiently because the nerve signals no longer function.” The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the NeuRx device for medical use in 2008.
The device, called the NeuRx diaphragm pacing system, seeks to make many improvements upon older respiratory aid models. Older models consisted of electrodes inserted directly on the phrenic nerve by way of incisions through the neck and chest. The phrenic nerve sends impulses from the brain to the diaphragm by way of the spinal cord, causing the large muscle to expand and contract properly, making the lungs inhale and exhale in a relatively natural fashion.
Other common treatments for spinal cord injury-based respiratory dysfunctions included the use of external mechanical ventilators that work by way of a tube inserted through the front of the throat, which has potential to interfere with speech.
The NeuRx device creators hope to revolutionize the respiratory-aid process with their new device, which works through 4 electrodes implanted into the diaphragm by way of incisions through the front of the lower abdomen. Dr. DiMaio also said of the NeuRx, “[It] has some advantages over traditional ventilators,” … “Patients have more mobility because they don’t have an external ventilator to carry around, and the surgery to implant the device is less invasive than previous treatments.”
The earlier nerve-stimulating electrodes had potential to scar and/or fatigue the phrenic nerve, whereas the NeuRx device works directly on the diaphragm with more diffuse electrical stimulus. The NeuRx also aids spinal cord injury patients to retain their natural speech, since the device does not involve incisions or tubes in the throat.
Other reported benefits of the NeuRx are: decreased incidence of infection, more natural breathing patterns, more mobility, less chance of scarring after surgery, and less chance of infection due to weakened respiratory ability.
Surgeons at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center are ready and equipped to begin implanting the device into eligible patients. The hospital is one of 25 total hospitals in the U.S. who are ready to implant the NeuRx in spinal cord injury and other respiratory-impaired patients. Hopefully the NeuRx diaphragm pacing system will provide relief and benefit to spinal cord injury patients in the near future.
References:
Morales, Katherine. (November 25, 2009). “New device implanted by surgeons help paralyzed patients breathe easier.” Retrieved December 9, 2009 from the EurekAlert website: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-11/usmc-ndi112509.php
Amazon’s Kindle e-book reader has a feature that allows users to set it up so that it “reads” their books aloud. A handy application for those with disabilities that limit their reading capabilities, such as paralysis or blindness, this feature has surprisingly gained some heat.
The tragic death of Natasha Richardson has brought the need for traumatic brain injury (TBI) awareness into stark relief. As with many things in life, we tend to look around, look over, and look through dangers that haven’t directly touched our lives. Like the child whistling in the dark, we skim over the short news piece that notes another life irrevocably changed by a brain injury and we think “that could never happen to me”.
This perspective shifts when when the injured person suddenly become someone we are familiar with, who we can in some way identify with. In an article by Bryan Brown, Carlin Flora who is a senior editor for Psychology Today, said that we can develop this identification with someone we have no personal knowledge of because “we see their faces over and over” in the media. “Our brains are tricked into thinking we know these people.”
A study by researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign explain it this way: celebrity identification allows us to feel a connection with some of the ideals they embody and that we consider our own, or as Matthew Hutson, news editor for Psychology Today puts it, “When they die, their memory lives on, and, by proxy, so does yours.”
When Richardson’s death was splashed across the media the people who had felt this connection to the actress, no matter how slight, were suddenly made aware of just how real this type of injury was. Articles were written about the dangers of TBIs, bloggers relayed the details in post after post, and readers found themselves wondering how to keep this from happening to themselves and their loved ones. But, as with even the most incredibly painful experiences, time has started to dim this tragedy. People go on with their lives, they push the uncomfortable emotions down and after a while, they start to forget.
What needs to be realized from this is that while yes, people will and DO forget, the cause of Richardson’s untimely death made an impact and it will, often in subtle ways, affect the lives, choices, and actions of many – hopefully for the better.
“Yen optimism plummets as Japanese economy sinks…â€
“The global economy is likely to shrink for the first time since World War II, and trade will decline by the most in 80 years.â€
“US unemployment rate to reach 9.4%.â€
“Russia’s official unemployment hits 2.34 million.â€
With headlines like these everywhere you look, it’s hard to, as aptly put in “Meet the Robinsons”, keep moving forward. As the world economy continues its nose dive, more and more people are forced to file for unemployment, state medical assistance, and food benefits. In tandem with the fall, the percentage of people having trouble paying for health care is rising fast – 21% of the American population at the last report.
Let’s work together to prevent brain injuries!
It’s that time again. National Brain Injury Awareness Month starts March 1st, and this year’s focus is on sports and concussions with an emphasis on youth sports. The importance of bringing attention to traumatic brain injuries (TBI) can’t be stressed enough, as public awareness is what spurs the creation of services, the financing of medical studies, and the acceptance and application of preventative measures.
“How do we stop physically disabled people from feeling suicidal in the first place?”
This poignant quote comes from a New Statesman column regarding Daniel James’ decision to end his life rather than live it as a tetraplegic. The writer, Victoria Brignell, also a tetraplegic, has an excellent point – the focus shouldn’t be on the ethics behind assisted suicide, but on addressing the the mental and emotional factors that create the urge in the first place.
In February’s issue of Arthritis Care & Research, a study funded by the National Institutes of Health addressed the occurrence, or lack of, exercise prescriptions. Of the 700 participants in the sample, less than 50 percent had been encouraged or told to use exercise as part of their recovery plan.
As many of you already know from personal experience, chronic pain is a very real and highly prevalent result of spinal cord injuries. Finding ways to deal with it when a cure is lacking can be both frustrating and time consuming. According to Kazuko L. Shem, M.D. with Santa Clara Valley Medical Center’s Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Center, 65-95 percent of spinal cord injury patients experience pain with up to 45 percent classifying it as “sever disabling pain”.
Thank you everyone for your readership! We have been going through some personnel changes as well as updating our Website. While we make the final conversion to Drupal, we will be bringing our blog up to date and keeping you informed of all the new stories, tips, trends and breakthroughs in spinal cord and brain injury research and news. Please submit any comments, questions or suggestions and we will address them in future posts.
Thank you for your patience while we update!
Rich Newsome
Every day, researchers are working hard to develop new therapies and treatments designed to treat symptoms, slow progression, and repair damage to the spinal cord. One of these treatments involves the use of stem cells.
Supporters and Detractors of Stem Cell Research
Because stem cells may have the potential to generate cells designed to replace or repair cells damaged by spinal cord injury, supporters feel it’s possible the benefits may far outweigh the negatives. Detractors of stem cell research focus on the moral and ethical dilemmas related to the fact that stem cells are harvested from embryos and fetal tissue. As a matter of fact, it’s difficult to turn on the television, flip through a magazine, or read the newspaper without encountering the controversy surrounding stem cell research and treatment…
We are pleased to share this guest post with our readers:
I’m Megan. I was born on May 6, 1985. I’m 23 years old and I am so thankful that I can say that. I nearly died when I was 22…
