Active clinical trials for "Spinal Cord Injuries"

A crossover trial with spinal cord injury volunteers will be conducted. Three sessions will be performed once a week in a counterbalanced order and at least with seven days washout period to minimize carry-over effects. In each session, volunteers will be submitted to quantity and quality of sleep, type of eating, fatigue and motivation level, Ashworth scale spasticity, cortical brain activity measures through simple pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (pTMS), spinal cord activity measures through electrical stimulation and non-invasive brain stimulation (rTMS)

This study aims to assess the feasibility of therapist-caregiver-patient training to use BCI and FES technology with a view to the inexpensive equipment eventually being used for home use by tetraplegic patients as a continuing rehabilitation method for sub-acute patients discharged from hospital.

Individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) live longer than before and live to an age where metabolic disorders become highly prevalent. Due to loss of mobility and severe skeletal muscle atrophy, obesity, glucose intolerance, and peripheral insulin resistance develop soon after the onset of SCI. These abnormalities are thought to contribute to the increased diabetes disease risk and accelerated aging process in the SCI population. As a result of these trends, overall burden of complications, economic impact and reduced quality of life are increasing. Until there are effective treatments for SCI, it is imperative to develop effective interventions to mitigate metabolic disorders that develop in individuals with SCI. The proposed research project examines the impact of early utilization of a novel neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) program on skeletal muscle metabolism and overall metabolic health in individuals with sub-acute, complete SCI.

Of the more than 250,000 Americans with severe spinal cord injury (SCI), 42,000 are military veterans. The Department of Veterans Affairs is the largest single network of SCI care providers in the nation. Patients with SCI experience functional disabilities as well as chronic pain. Studies show that individuals with SCI report pain refractory to conventional treatments. Civilian and veteran patients with SCI have associated pain with impairments in physical and cognitive function, sleep, employment, social relationships, community re-integration and quality of life. In a survey of individuals with SCI, those who used acupuncture experienced a reduction of pain symptoms lasting hours after treatment, with 27.3% reporting pain relief for days. A pilot study on the use of auricular acupuncture for neuropathic pain associated with SCI showed a greater reduction of pain as measured by the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS). A recent review of randomized controlled trials regarding the use of acupuncture in SCI found that only two of sixteen included studies were of high quality. There was limited evidence for the use of acupuncture in motor functional recovery, bladder function recovery, and in pain control related to SCI. Further high quality studies are needed. This proposal is for a phase II randomized clinical trial.

The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of creatine monohydrate or vitamin D supplementation on strength gains following a traditional resistance training program for adults with spinal cord injury.

This clinical study is designed to investigate the mechanisms of blood pressure regulation and respiratory motor function affected by spinal cord injury (SCI). We hypothesize that impaired blood pressure regulation in individuals with chronic SCI can be improved by restoring respiratory motor function by using Respiratory Motor Training (RMT).

Balneotherapy is a physiotherapy technique which allows patients to work out in a weightless environment and which is often used in patients with spinal cord injury. In normal subjects, water immersion generates a reduction in lung volumes. The effects of water immersion on the respiratory function of spinal cord injury patient (who are liable to present a respiratory failure secondary to paralysis) are not well known. They could be deleterious (by majoring respiratory failure)or beneficial (by mimicking the effect of a corset and improving respiratory function). Therefore, we are planning to study the effect of different water immersion levels on the respiratory function of spinal cord injury patients.

The goal of this proposal is to investigate the efficacy of a complimentary approach of evoked resistance training and testosterone replacement therapy on the changes in body composition and metabolic profile after SCI. The proposed method could become a recommended and simple intervention especially for individuals with limited access and poor tolerance to exercise. The rationale is based on the evidence that individuals with SCI experience decline in anabolic hormones which may be responsible for the deterioration in body composition and metabolic profiles and leads to increase obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia and subsequently cardiovascular disease. The designed study will provide explanation to the adaptations in the energy source of the muscle cells in response to training.

The purpose of this study is to assess the impact on sexuality in women with a spinal cord injury, twelve months after their first return to home, of a program including structured information and education on sexuality, delivered 6 months after their first return to home.

The purpose of this investigation is to evaluate methods in spinal cord injured individuals to improve reflex urination. Anal dilation will be investigated to reduce high urethral resistance and a vibrator on the patient's bottom will be tested to induce more sustained bladder contractions for better bladder emptying.