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Recovery from Spinal Cord Injury: Part One (December 13, 2002, One)

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Program Summary

When actor Christopher Reeve was paralyzed after an equestrian accident in 1995, doctors told him he would never breathe on his own or regain use of his limbs. Refusing to accept this pronouncement, Reeve embarked on a grueling course of intense exercise therapy and progressed to being able to breathe for an hour at a time without the ventilator. This past September, Reeve, a quadriplegic for seven years, stunned the medical world by displaying movement in a finger. He has also recovered some ability to move joints while floating in water and to perceive touch in several areas of his body.

Reeve’s accomplishment has stood conventional medical wisdom on its head. Doctors long believed that any possible recovery of movement after a severe spinal cord injury could only be achieved within the first year or two of therapy. Reeve has shown that this is not necessarily so. Magnetic resonance image mapping of his brain during stimulation and movement tests revealed that some areas retained normal stimulus response, while other areas took over for parts that were no longer receiving messages. This development, along with advances in rehabilitation and stem cell research, gives hope to patients who were never offered any.

Neuroscientists caution, however, that Reeve is the only patient who has been studied and that his spinal cord was not completely severed in the accident. Intense therapy is still not believed to benefit those whose cords were cut entirely. They also point out that the type of non-traditional therapy that Reeve undergoes is not covered by insurance and is beyond the financial means of the majority of patients.

Guests

John McDonald, assistant professor in the department of neurology and neurological surgery and director of the spinal cord injury program at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri

Maurizio Corbetta, associate professor of neurology, radiology, anatomy and neurobiology and head of stroke and brain injury rehabilitation at Washington University

Naomi Kleitman, program director of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland

Related Links and Resources

NYTimes.com, Sept. 9, 2002: Exercising Toward Repair of the Spinal Cord

CBSnews.com, Dec. 10, 2002: Reeve Brain Test Surprises Doctors

Sciencedaily.com, Dec. 2, 2002: Brain Preserves Ability To "Feel" And "Move" After Spinal Cord Injury In One Quadriplegic
Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation

MEDLINEplus: Spinal Cord Injuries

For Discussion:

• What are the different parts of the brain called? What functions does each one control?
• The brain is described as being “plastic.” What does that mean?
• How are most spinal cord injuries sustained?
• How can you protect yourself from head injuries?
• Have you ever had an injury or illness that temporarily disabled you in some way? How did you feel emotionally?

Activities

Brain mail. The Domino Effect experiment at the Exploratorium explains how to use dominoes to illustrate how the brain sends and receives messages along the spinal cord as well as what happens when the pathway is interrupted.

Neuron navigation. Plan to spend a few hours exploring Neuroscience for Kids, one of the best sites for children (and adults) about the brain. Dozens of fascinating pages discuss everything you ever wanted to know about brain structure and function, including an in-depth explanation of plasticity. Terrific experiments, neuroscience in the news, and links to many other sites useful to teachers are included.

Poking around. Students can explore brain mapping and motor function with simulated electric probes that they can control with their computer mouse at Probe the Brain.

Food for thought. Science Snacks at the Exploratorium offer a great menu of experiments in sensory perception. Mirrorly a Window, which can be found under either reflection or light experiments, demonstrates what happens when the brain receives conflicting messages. The demonstration takes a while to construct but has a great wow factor.

Do it yourself. Arrange a field trip to a rehabilitation facility so students can see and try therapies used for patients with spinal cord injuries.

Use the search box below to perform a Google search within any of the specifc sites or general domains mentioned in this Activities section.

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