Focus on Impact | CSM Report to Community
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Reversing the effects of spinal cord injury International clinical trials to begin on the benefits of neurostimulation for regulating blood pressure
D
r. Richi Gill, MD (BSc ‘04), is treating patients again, able to enjoy time with his family and get a good night’s sleep, thanks to a new medical discovery by CSM researchers.
and Courtine co-led an international study that proves spinal cord stimulators can bridge the body’s autonomous regulation system, controlling blood pressure without medication.
Three years ago, Gill broke his neck in a boogie board accident while on vacation with his young family. “What many people don’t realize is that a spinal cord injury prevents some systems within the body from regulating automatically,” says Gill. “My blood pressure would drop drastically, leaving me fatigued, dizzy, and unable to focus. The condition can be life threatening, requiring medication for life.”
“The spinal cord acts as a communication line allowing the brain to send signals to tell the body such as when and how to move, as well as how to control vital functions, including blood pressure,” says Phillips. “This communication line is broken after a spinal cord injury. We created the first platform to understand the mechanisms underlying blood pressure instability after spinal cord injury, which allowed us to develop a new cutting-edge solution.”
“What many people don’t realize is that a spinal cord injury prevents some systems within the body from regulating automatically.”
But new research from Drs. Aaron Phillips, PhD, and Grégoire Courtine, PhD, at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), has been life-changing for Gill and could be for others living with spinal cord injury (SCI). Drs. Phillips
That solution was developed by a multidisciplinary team of researchers and engineers from the Libin Cardiovascular Institute, the Hotchkiss Brain Institute and the McCaig Institute for Bone and Joint Health, all part of the UCalgary RESTORE Network.
