Putting a protein into overdrive to heal spinal cord injuries

Using genetic engineering, researchers at UT Southwestern and Indiana University have reprogrammed scar-forming cells in mouse spinal cords to create new nerve cells, spurring recovery after spinal cord injury. The findings, published online today in Cell Stem Cell, could offer hope for the hundreds of thousands of people worldwide who suffer a spinal cord injury […]

Scientists repair injured spinal cord using patients’ own stem cells

Intravenous injection of bone marrow derived stem cells (MSCs) in patients with spinal cord injuries led to significant improvement in motor functions, researchers from Yale University and Japan report Feb. 18 in the Journal of Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery. For more than half of the patients, substantial improvements in key functions—such as ability to walk, […]

Mouse study: Gabapentin prevents harmful structural changes in spinal cord

Research led by The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and College of Medicine found that the widely prescribed pain-relief drug gabapentin can prevent harmful structural changes in the injured spinal cords of mice, and also block cardiovascular changes and immune suppression caused by spinal cord injury. “Gabapentin is often prescribed as a treatment for […]

Spinal Cord Stimulation May Ease Diabetic Nerve Pain

TUESDAY, Nov. 10, 2020 — Low-frequency spinal cord stimulation (SCS) may be effective for treating painful diabetic neuropathy (DN), according to a study scheduled for presentation at the 19th Annual Pain Medicine Meeting, a meeting of the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, held virtually from Nov. 20 to 22. Erika Petersen, M.D., […]