New implant offers promise for the paralyzed

A system developed by Grégoire Courtine and Jocelyne Bloch now enables patients with a complete spinal cord injury to stand, walk and even perform recreational activities like swimming, cycling and canoeing. The images made headlines around the world in late 2018. David Mzee, who had been left paralyzed by a partial spinal cord injury suffered in a sports accident, got up from his wheelchair and began to walk with the help of a walker. This was the first proof that Courtine and Bloch's system - which uses electrical stimulation to reactivate spinal neurons - could work effectively in patients. Fast forward three years, and a new milestone has just been reached. The research team led by both Courtine, a professor at EPFL, and Bloch, a professor and neurosurgeon at CHUV, has enhanced their system with more sophisticated implants controlled by artificial-intelligence software. These implants can stimulate the region of the spinal cord that activates the trunk and leg muscles.