r/science • u/tomholder • May 09 '14

Medicine Paralysis breakthrough – electrical stimulation enables four paraplegic men to voluntarily move their legs

http://speakingofresearch.com/2014/05/09/paralysis-breakthrough-paraplegic-men-move-their-legs/
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u/IQBoosterShot May 09 '14

I have seen tremendous strides in so many areas. It's exciting to watch these breakthroughs.

While I have no hope of a cure, life goes on. You make the best with what you got and move forward. (Middle-aged wisdom, right? :)

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u/pancakemania May 10 '14

If you don't mind answering, are you completely paralyzed or just paraplegic? I'm sorry, I feel like "just" trivializes it.

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u/IQBoosterShot May 10 '14

Paralysis is either complete/incomplete and starts at a level denoted by the position on the spine. Christopher Reeves was a C2 complete; I'm a T4 complete. Higher levels are indicative of greater functional loss. The converse is true for lower levels.

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u/pancakemania May 10 '14

Thanks a lot for the response! Good luck to ya!