DBS of PPN to Improve Walking in Chronic SCI Patients

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating condition affecting over 1 million individuals in North America. SCI often results in severe motor impairments with few available treatments options. Recent groundbreaking research has demonstrated that deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the mesencephalic locomotor region (MLR) greatly improves locomotion in a rat model with incomplete SCI. The pedunculopontine nucleus (PPN - a specific nucleus within the MLR) in humans has already been established as an auxillary DBS target in Parkinson Disease (PD), to improve motor control and locomotion. DBS of other targets has also been safely used in humans with SCI for chronic pain. These findings suggest that DBS of the PPN may have potential as a therapeutic intervention in the SCI population to improve locomotion. Our goal is to conduct a pioneering study in 5 select motor-incomplete chronic SCI patients that cannot functionally ambulate to examine if bilateral DBS of the PPN improves walking