A man diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease nearly three decades ago, who previously struggled with mobility to the point of frequent falls, has regained independence in his daily activities, including climbing stairs, thanks to a pioneering spinal cord implant.
Marc Gautier, 62, residing near Bordeaux, France, has coped with Parkinson’s since the age of 36 and had to cease his career as an architect three years ago due to worsening mobility issues that confined him to home.
“I practically could not walk anymore without falling frequently, several times a day. In some situations, such as entering a lift, I’d trample on the spot, as though I was frozen there,” Gautier recounted in a press release.
However, following the surgical implantation of a new device two years ago, Gautier has experienced a remarkable transformation. “Every Sunday I go to the lake, and I walk around six kilometers. It’s incredible,” he exclaimed.
Parkinson’s disease, characterized by insufficient dopamine in the brain, leads to physical symptoms like rigidity and tremors.
While treatments typically involve dopamine therapy and deep brain stimulation, these can lose efficacy over time as the disease progresses.
“Approximately 90% of advanced Parkinson’s patients encounter walking difficulties, which significantly impact their quality of life,” explained Jocelyne Bloch, a study co-author and director at the NeuroRestore treatment center for implantable neurotechnologies, and senior attending neurosurgeon at University Hospital of Lausanne, Switzerland.
Collaborating between Switzerland and France, scientists developed a novel treatment involving a neuroprosthesis implanted in Gautier’s spinal cord.
his device, designed to stimulate sensory fibers linked to leg muscles, aims to compensate for the weakened feedback loop caused by Parkinson’s.
“In healthy individuals, sensory fibers stimulate muscles into movement. In Gautier’s case, Parkinson’s had weakened these fibers, disrupting this process,” clarified Grégoire Courtine, another study co-author and neuroscience professor at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne.
The neuroprosthesis allows Gautier to activate or deactivate stimulation himself, resembling the stretch reflex in medical exams where tapping a tendon elicits an automatic response.
“Instead of solely targeting the dopamine-deprived brain region, we explored the spinal cord’s role in initiating leg muscle activity for walking,” Courtine elaborated.
Published in Nature Medicine, the study reports Gautier’s immediate improvement in walking post-implantation, with near-normal function after several weeks of rehabilitation.
Gautier uses the neuroprosthetic for approximately eight hours daily, switching it off during prolonged sitting or sleep.
The researchers expressed enthusiasm about expanding this proof of concept into a viable therapy for Parkinson’s-related mobility issues.
“These findings offer promising avenues to develop treatments that alleviate gait deficits due to Parkinson’s disease,” Bloch remarked.
Further trials involving six additional patients are slated within the next 18 months, with potential commercial availability expected in five to ten years, pending successful outcomes.
Commenting on the study, David Dexter, director of research at Parkinson’s UK, emphasized the early stage of the research and the need for further development and testing.
He described the study as a significant advancement and expressed hope for its rapid progress.
Eduardo Fernández, director of the Institute of Bioengineering at Miguel Hernandez University of Elche, Spain, acknowledged the innovative approach of targeting unaffected nervous system areas in Parkinson’s patients with mobility issues.
However, he urged cautious optimism and incremental advancement to avoid raising false hopes.
“The future looks promising, but patience and methodical progress are essential to maintain the credibility of this research,” Fernández cautioned.
