Victims of car accidents, motorcycle accidents and trucking accidents who have suffered a spinal cord injury may look forward to a day when they can walk independently again thanks to a new breakthrough in research in the field.
Scientists recently announced a breakthrough in their attempts to regenerate axons in persons who have suffered a spinal cord injury. The breakthrough was announced by a team of scientists that included both Swiss and American researchers. According to the team, they found that redirecting regenerated axons to their target regions was more effective in helping along the healing process and aided the recovery of the patient, compared to random regrowth of axons.
Back in 2018, the team had identified that axons which are responsible for communicating transmissions among the nerve cells could be regrown after the damage. However, they found that even when the axons were regrown, it did not really lead to any marked or significant functional recovery for the patient. Now, however, they say that they have found a way to redirect the regenerated axons to their target region, helping restore functional movement. The researchers experimented on mice with spinal cord injury, and found that the mice were actually able to walk independently after the treatment.
These are early days yet, and the researchers caution that they still face challenges in ensuring that the targeting and regeneration of axons continues over longer distances in mice.
The announcement of this breakthrough comes in time for National Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month, which is marked in the month of September. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that auto accidents and slip and fall accidents are the two most common causes of spinal cord injury in the United States. Your risk of suffering a spinal cord injury in an auto accident is at its highest if you are between the age of 16 and 30 while your risk of suffering similar injuries in a slip and fall accident is the highest if you are above the age of 65.
A spinal injury is caused when there is a jolt or a blow to the spinal cord. If the injury is higher up the spinal cord, then the person may suffer from tetraplegia or quadriplegia which affects all the limbs. If, on the other hand, the injury is located further down the spinal cord, the person may suffer paraplegia which affects the lower limbs of the body only. There is no complete cure for a spinal cord injury, and treatments involve management of symptoms, rehabilitation and therapy to make it easier for the person to perform routine activities.
The Atlanta car accident attorneys at Katz Personal Injury Lawyers are dedicated to the representation of persons who have suffered injuries in auto accidents in the metro Atlanta region and across the state of Georgia. If you or a loved one have suffered injuries in a car accident, talk to a lawyer at our firm and discuss your legal options for a claim for damages. You may qualify for damages that include medical costs, lost income and other forms of compensation. Talk to an attorney at our firm, and discuss your case. Initial consultations are free.