Active clinical trials for "Spinal Cord Injuries"

People with high spinal lesions are at risk of respiratory complications because they have partial or complete paralysis of breathing muscles. Previous work has shown that tetraplegic lung volumes can be increased by using abdominal FES during expiration. The technique is attractive because it is non-invasive, painless in tetraplegia and completely reversible. It may provide a treatment for augmenting the patient's breathing both in the acute presentation of spinal injury (when half of cervical injuries require ventilation) and in long term management of tetraplegia and high paraplegia. We propose a pilot study in a small group of subjects to see if the technique is feasible from both a clinical and engineering viewpoint. The aims of the study are: 1)To examine the effects of abdominal FES on lung mechanics and gas exchange in tetraplegic subjects. 2)To optimise the stimulation pattern and intensity via electronic stimulators and to design a trigger to allow the FES to follow the subject's own breathing cycle automatically.

The ability to voluntarily move the ankles is important for walking. After spinal cord injury (SCI), this ability is impaired because of changes in the communication between the brain, spinal cord, and body. Whole body vibration (WBV) is a treatment that increases voluntary muscle control and decreases uncontrollable muscle movement in people with SCI. The purpose of this study is to understand how WBV can impact ankle control and uncontrollable muscle movement.

There is evidence that human umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hUCB-MSCs) can differentiate into oligodendrocytes and neurons, and improve the recovery of nerve function, which strongly suggests the feasibility and effectiveness of hUCB-MSCs as an intervention treatment for spinal cord injury. At present, there are only a few clinical centers in which hUCB-MSCs transplantation for treatment of chronic spinal cord injury has been performed and a certain degree of efficacy has been achieved. However, this has not been supported by systematic standardized randomized controlled trials. Therefore, the investigators design a prospective, randomized, open-label, parallel, controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of human umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSCs)/hUCB-MSCs to treat spinal cord injury. The primary objective of this study was to investigate whether hUC-MSCs)/hUCB-MSCs transplantation can improve the locomotor function of patients with spinal cord injury. The secondary objectives were to investigate whether hUC-MSCs)/hUCB-MSCs transplantation can improve the muscle tension of patients with spinal cord injury and investigate the complications and safety of hUC-MSCs)/hUCB-MSCs transplantation.

The study is designed to assess the role of functional neural regeneration collagen scaffold transplantation combined with epidural electrical stimulation in spinal cord injury patients.

Spinal cord injury leads to long-lasting paralysis and impairment. Re-enabling movement of paralyzed areas is challenging and more information is needed about neurological recovery. The purpose of this study is to understand the contribution of individual neural tracts to movements facilitated by transcutaneous spinal cord stimulation (SCS).

The investigators hypothesize that SCI patients using immersive IVR training will show improved reduction of neuropathic pain that will outlast the training sessions and transfers into daily life.

Sublesional bone loss after acute spinal cord injury (SCI) is sudden, progressive, and dramatic. After depletion of bone mass and the loss of architectural integrity, it may be difficult, if even possible, to restore skeletal mass and strength. Denosumab is a relative new, highly potent anti-resorptive agent that has proven efficacy in postmenopausal osteoporosis to improve bone mass and in solid tumor patients to prevent a skeletal-related event to a greater extent than that with bisphosphonate administration. In persons with complete motor lesions, bisphosphonates have not been effective at reducing bone loss at the knee, the site of greatest relevance because of its increased risk of fracture. Anti-RANKL therapy appears to be more potent than bisphosphonates in animal models of bone loss due to immobilization, suggesting that treatment with denosumab may prove to be an efficacious therapy for persons with acute SCI to preserve bone mass and strength.

The primary objective of this study is to achieve successful walking skills using exoskeletal walking devices over the course of 36 sessions in 3 months at specific velocities and distances in people with chronic SCI who are wheelchair dependent for community mobility. The secondary objectives are to determine if this amount of exoskeletal walking is effective in improving bowel function and body composition in the same patient population. The exploratory objectives are to address additional questions concerning the retention or non-retention of the positive changes, the effects of the increased physical activity from this intervention on vagal tone, orthostatic tolerance, lipid profile, total testosterone, estradiol levels, and quality of life (QOL). A Phase III randomized clinical trial (RCT) will be performed using a crossover design and employing an exoskeletal-assisted walking intervention. The experimental arm will be compared to a usual activities (UA) arm, as the control, in 64 persons with chronic SCI (>6 month post injury) who are wheelchair-dependent for outdoor mobility in the community. The WALK arm will consist of supervised exoskeletal-assisted walking training, three sessions per week (4-6 h/week) for 36 sessions for their second 12-week period. The UA arm will consist of identification of usual activities for each participant, encouragement to continue with these activities and attention by study team members throughout the 12-week UA arm. These activities will be recorded in a weekly log. The investigators hypotheses are that 1) this exoskeletal intervention will be successful in training ambulatory skills in this patient population, 2) the exoskeletal intervention will be better than a control group in improving body composition, bowel function, metabolic parameters and quality of life in the same population.

The objective of this study is to assess the efficacy of IV minocycline in improving neurological and functional outcome after acute non-penetrating traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI). The primary hypothesis is that intravenous minocycline twice daily (800 mg initial dose tapered to 400 mg by 100 mg at each dose then administered to the end of day 7) administered to subjects with acute traumatic non-penetrating cervical SCI starting within 12 hours of injury will improve motor recovery as assessed by the International Standards for Neurologic Classification of Spinal Cord Injury - ISNCSCI (a.k.a. ASIA) neurological examination measured between 3 months and 1 year post-injury, compared to placebo. The secondary hypotheses are that the above minocycline treatment will also results in improvement in ASIA sensory improvement, in ASIA grade and in functional outcome as assessed by Spinal Cord Independence Measure (SCIM) and Short Form 36 (SF-36), compared to placebo. In addition the effect of minocycline on neurological and functional outcome after SCI is expected to be more pronounced in those subjects with motor incomplete SCI compared to those with motor compete SCI. A subgroup analysis will be undertaken to examine this hypothesis.

Compromised respiratory function as a result of tetraplegia is a leading cause of rehospitalisation for the tetraplegic patient group. Electrical stimulation of the abdominal muscles has previously been used to improve the respiratory function of tetraplegic patients in the chronic stage of injury. In this study the investigators aim to evaluate the optimum protocol for the use of electrical stimulation of the abdominal muscles to improve the respiratory function of the tetraplegic population. The investigators also aim to investigate whether abdominal functional electrical stimulation combined with mechanical insufflation-exsufflation can be used to help further improve the respiratory function of the tetraplegic population.