People with a complete thoracic spinal cord injury below T6 are needed to participate in a trial being conducted by researchers at the University of New South Wales (UNSW).
The trial, tRESTORE, will investigate a haptic virtual reality walking treatment plus transcutaneous spinal cord stimulation to restore sensation below the level of injury.
Currently Recruiting
Recently we have discovered that around 50% of individuals with a complete spinal cord injury have some surviving spinal nerve fibres across the injury site.
When these individuals (labelled as having a ‘discomplete’ SCI) are touched below their level of injury, even though they cannot feel the touch, the touch information is forwarded to the brain through these surviving fibres. The signal that reaches the brain can be detected by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
Participation in this trial involves:
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Having an MRI to determine if you have evidence of signal in brain areas in response to touch below the injury level
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Completing online questionnaires at 2 timepoints
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Attending the NeuroRecovery Research Hub at UNSW once a day for 20 days over a 4-to-5-week period to participate in the treatment sessions.
What is involved in the treatment sessions?
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Engaging with a virtual reality walking game and using your virtual legs to explore a virtual world. As you move in the virtual space, your brain perceives it as real walking, stimulating the areas responsible for sensation and movement.
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While you walk virtually, we will apply gentle, walking-like pressure to the soles of your feet using a foot massager device, AND
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At the same time, we will stimulate your spine to enhance the responsiveness of the remaining nerve fibres, helping touch signals reach the brain, aiming to restore sensation.
If you have a complete spinal cord injury below T6, are 18 years or older, and more than 6 months post injury you may be eligible to participate.
To register your interest, please complete and submit the form. The research team will contact you as soon as possible.