A ‘groundbreaking’ cyborg-style implant has offered paralysed patients a new hope after rats suffering from seemingly inoperable spinal injuries were once again able to walk.
French scientists have created a thin strip, fitted with electrodes, which is implanted along the spinal cord to deliver electrical impulses and drugs.
The prosthetic so far has been tested on paralysed rats, who, having been fitted with the implant, were able to walk after just a few weeks of training.
Researchers at the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne hope to move to clinical trials in humans within the next few years. Should the device work on humans, the team believes the device could potentially last up to ten years before needing to be replaced.
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