A Paralyzed Man Can Walk Naturally Again With Brain and Spine Implants 41
An anonymous reader quotes a report from the New York Times: Gert-Jan Oskam was living in China in 2011 when he was in a motorcycle accident that left him paralyzed from the hips down. Now, with a combination of devices, scientists have given him control over his lower body again. "For 12 years I've been trying to get back my feet," Mr. Oskam said in a press briefing on Tuesday. "Now I have learned how to walk normal, natural." In a study published on Wednesday in the journal Nature, researchers in Switzerland described implants that provided a "digital bridge" between Mr. Oskam's brain and his spinal cord, bypassing injured sections. The discovery allowed Mr. Oskam, 40, to stand, walk and ascend a steep ramp with only the assistance of a walker. More than a year after the implant was inserted, he has retained these abilities and has actually showed signs of neurological recovery, walking with crutches even when the implant was switched off. "We've captured the thoughts of Gert-Jan, and translated these thoughts into a stimulation of the spinal cord to re-establish voluntary movement," Gregoire Courtine, a spinal cord specialist at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne, who helped lead the research, said at the press briefing.
In the new study, the brain-spine interface, as the researchers called it, took advantage of an artificial intelligence thought decoder to read Mr. Oskam's intentions -- detectable as electrical signals in his brain -- and match them to muscle movements. The etiology of natural movement, from thought to intention to action, was preserved. The only addition, as Dr. Courtine described it, was the digital bridge spanning the injured parts of the spine. [...] To achieve this result, the researchers first implanted electrodes in Mr. Oskam's skull and spine. The team then used a machine-learning program to observe which parts of the brain lit up as he tried to move different parts of his body. This thought decoder was able to match the activity of certain electrodes with particular intentions: One configuration lit up whenever Mr. Oskam tried to move his ankles, another when he tried to move his hips.
Then the researchers used another algorithm to connect the brain implant to the spinal implant, which was set to send electrical signals to different parts of his body, sparking movement. The algorithm was able to account for slight variations in the direction and speed of each muscle contraction and relaxation. And, because the signals between the brain and spine were sent every 300 milliseconds, Mr. Oskam could quickly adjust his strategy based on what was working and what wasn't. Within the first treatment session he could twist his hip muscles. Over the next few months, the researchers fine-tuned the brain-spine interface to better fit basic actions like walking and standing. Mr. Oskam gained a somewhat healthy-looking gait and was able to traverse steps and ramps with relative ease, even after months without treatment. Moreover, after a year in treatment, he began noticing clear improvements in his movement without the aid of the brain-spine interface. The researchers documented these improvements in weight-bearing, balancing and walking tests. Now, Mr. Oskam can walk in a limited way around his house, get in and out of a car and stand at a bar for a drink. For the first time, he said, he feels like he is the one in control.
In the new study, the brain-spine interface, as the researchers called it, took advantage of an artificial intelligence thought decoder to read Mr. Oskam's intentions -- detectable as electrical signals in his brain -- and match them to muscle movements. The etiology of natural movement, from thought to intention to action, was preserved. The only addition, as Dr. Courtine described it, was the digital bridge spanning the injured parts of the spine. [...] To achieve this result, the researchers first implanted electrodes in Mr. Oskam's skull and spine. The team then used a machine-learning program to observe which parts of the brain lit up as he tried to move different parts of his body. This thought decoder was able to match the activity of certain electrodes with particular intentions: One configuration lit up whenever Mr. Oskam tried to move his ankles, another when he tried to move his hips.
Then the researchers used another algorithm to connect the brain implant to the spinal implant, which was set to send electrical signals to different parts of his body, sparking movement. The algorithm was able to account for slight variations in the direction and speed of each muscle contraction and relaxation. And, because the signals between the brain and spine were sent every 300 milliseconds, Mr. Oskam could quickly adjust his strategy based on what was working and what wasn't. Within the first treatment session he could twist his hip muscles. Over the next few months, the researchers fine-tuned the brain-spine interface to better fit basic actions like walking and standing. Mr. Oskam gained a somewhat healthy-looking gait and was able to traverse steps and ramps with relative ease, even after months without treatment. Moreover, after a year in treatment, he began noticing clear improvements in his movement without the aid of the brain-spine interface. The researchers documented these improvements in weight-bearing, balancing and walking tests. Now, Mr. Oskam can walk in a limited way around his house, get in and out of a car and stand at a bar for a drink. For the first time, he said, he feels like he is the one in control.
Neuralink will get the credit (Score:5, Interesting)
This is nice, but I am pretty sure in a year or two Neuralink will show a flashy demo of the same tech and get the credit for being first. Maybe do something where the paralyzed persons story is told and then he appears on stage in a wheelchair and then gets up and starts walking. You know how the faith healers used to do it back in the 70s until they got exposed.
Switzerland FTW (Score:4, Interesting)
These Swiss researchers have held TED talks for many years now. They've demonstrated parts of it over the last couple of years. It should be widely known, but the masses probably only read Elon's tweets. The strange thing is that the American news stories (TV) rarely ever mention that the technology was developed in another country. It's something I've noticed over the years.
Re: Switzerland FTW (Score:2)
To be fair most places do that. Was reading an article yesterday that I thought was a southern American state and reality it was Briton. The publisher switches between locations with the same baises and rants it was harder to tell
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
This is nice, but I am pretty sure in a year or two Neuralink will show a flashy demo of the same tech and get the credit for being first.
Wait woah. This is Elon time we're talking about. They will have an 'investor day' presentation in a year or two where they will have an actor pretending to be a disabled person come on the stage in a wheel chair and then climb out of it and start dancing.
Elon will then beat the actor with a stick to show how robust the tech will be.
At the end, he will declare that preorders are available today, and that the tech will be ready 'this year'.
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Wait woah. This is Elon time we're talking about. They will have an 'investor day' presentation in a year or two where they will have an actor pretending to be a disabled person come on the stage in a wheel chair and then climb out of it and start dancing.
Elon will then beat the actor with a stick to show how robust the tech will be.
Or claim, and try to demonstrate, that the person is now bulletproof, like with the Cybertruck demo [youtube.com] ... :-)
Re: (Score:2)
Why do you make every random story a chance to talk smack about people you hate?
You do know this is why you don't have any actual friends, right?
And why don't you log in and fight like a human?
Re: (Score:2)
That's a hilarious notion. Neuralink is presently petitioning the FDA for an Investigational Device Exemption [ieee.org] - formal permission to begin in-human clinical trials. Their first application was outright rejected in March [arstechnica.com] as shoddy and filled with slapdash work. A new IDE hasn't been submitted yet, and will take many months to get approved.
And despite Elon's typical hype about e
Re: (Score:2)
That's a hilarious notion. Neuralink is presently petitioning the FDA for an Investigational Device Exemption [ieee.org] - formal permission to begin in-human clinical trials. Their first application was outright rejected in March [arstechnica.com] as shoddy and filled with slapdash work. A new IDE hasn't been submitted yet, and will take many months to get approved.
And despite Elon's typical hype about everything that could be done, the IDE would only permit the human subjects to interface with a computer - type words, move a mouse cursor - probably in a clinical setting. More complicated applications - such as using the Neuralink to control yet another implant to move muscles - are a looong and tedious regulatory process off. And that's if they can demonstrate that the device is safe and effective in the first place.
My prediction: at best Neuralink will be demonstrating 10 words-per-minute typing in two years.
Yeah, we already know how far away commonplace application of brain-servo-neurostimulator interface work is. Afterall, ST:TNG has shown us that, even in the latter part of the 23rd Century, it is still a wildly controversial and experimental technology.
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So, you're saying Elon's companies work a lot like Apple? They don't truly invent things often, but they iterate on existing ideas and with the power of marketing and an R&D team that cares about presentation of a product, they wind up getting credit for it?
Yeah - I think I knew this about them already, and I'm kind of ok with it. Inventors aren't typically great at sales and PR. They're busy inventing.
Re: (Score:2)
So, you're saying Elon's companies work a lot like Apple? They don't truly invent things often, but they iterate on existing ideas and with the power of marketing and an R&D team that cares about presentation of a product, they wind up getting credit for it?
Yeah - I think I knew this about them already, and I'm kind of ok with it. Inventors aren't typically great at sales and PR. They're busy inventing.
Offtopic much?
Hater.
Re: (Score:2)
This is nice, but I am pretty sure in a year or two Neuralink will show a flashy demo of the same tech and get the credit for being first. Maybe do something where the paralyzed persons story is told and then he appears on stage in a wheelchair and then gets up and starts walking. You know how the faith healers used to do it back in the 70s until they got exposed.
Hopefully they won't claim, and try to demonstrate, that he's bulletproof, like Elon did with the Cybertruck demo [youtube.com] ... :-)
Re:naturally? (Score:5, Insightful)
If he's walking after being paralyzed, that's a win - regardless of how he looks while doing so.
Re:naturally? (Score:5, Informative)
Just what I was thinking. My grandfather was sort of a natural case of this - polio in the spine, THEN had a jack fail and drop a snow plowing machine(one of the big ones that are used to clear highways and such) onto his back*. Permanently disabled(state disability because the supervisor told him to use the already marked defective lift), they ended up using his floating ribs to rebuild support for his spine. Note: I wasn't born yet, so back in the '50s or so?
Anyways, they predicted he had like 18 months to live(he died like 40 years later), would be permanently in a wheelchair(he was able to walk again, but never all that great), etc...
While it might not be considered the complete and utter win that being able to walk and run completely normally again would be, just being able to do so after that is, indeed, a win.
*Use jackstands and other supports people!
Re: naturally? (Score:2)
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If he's walking after being paralyzed, that's a win - regardless of how he looks while doing so.
Absolutely. Walking at all is an amazing breakthrough.
"Naturally" in this case I take to mean "without mechanical assistance", a la an exoskeleton or powered walker. I'm thinking Drummer in The Expanse.
Re:naturally? (Score:5, Insightful)
Wow talk about nitpicking. This is a dude, paralyzed, walking again. That was with two 64-electrode arrays and a 300ms control latency. In the future I would imagine they will use many more electrodes and reduce that latency. After they perfect walking and gait they can hands and full dexterity. Maybe of robotic limbs. People have already demonstrated texting via BCI and it is almost as fast as typing .. and most likely will be much faster than typing in a few iterations: https://www.nature.com/article... [nature.com] If we keep researching this a lot of people can be helped by it.
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The latency is intention ...
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Wow talk about nitpicking. This is a dude, paralyzed, walking again.
This is Slashdot. Bitching about what a bad solution X was is, no matter how good the results were, is par for the course
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The vid doesn't look too natural to me. He walks like a spaz
Find the joy in your life man. Don't waste it.
Re: (Score:2)
The vid doesn't look too natural to me. He walks like a spaz
Trump? Is that you?
Moron.
Natural improvements (Score:2)
At least his body is improving naturally: "Moreover, after a year in treatment, he began noticing clear improvements in his movement without the aid of the brain-spine interface".
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At least his body is improving naturally: "Moreover, after a year in treatment, he began noticing clear improvements in his movement without the aid of the brain-spine interface".
The brain already demonstrating neuroplasticity.
Very cool!
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That's kind of what I was thinking. It's absolutely an amazing advancement but things that require technological intervention and bodily implants are pretty much the opposite of natural.
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That's kind of what I was thinking. It's absolutely an amazing advancement but things that require technological intervention and bodily implants are pretty much the opposite of natural.
Oh, STFU!
So a brain implant can communicate wirelessly... (Score:1)
Having it communicate with a spine implant is the obvious first step, that everyone will agree is ethical. Having it communicate with a robotic helper monkey, so the elderly can live independently, is probably the next step. The third step... ehhh... quite possibly involves military robots...
I remember something like this from Spiderman.... (Score:2)
Re: (Score:1)
I think the relevant movie reference here is "Upgrade" from 2018. Well worth checking out if you've not seen it.
Funny, I do it in reverse (Score:1)
get in and out of a car and stand at a bar for a drink
Me, I sent at the bar for a drink until I can't stay upright anymore, and then I can't get in my car because the barman took my keys away from me...
Did they really need AI? (Score:2)
Does medical science really not know which muscle groups are involved in walking, and how the body uses them to balance and stay upright? Do they really need an AI to tell them which nerves are being signaled when the patient is telling them, "I'm trying to walk now"?
I would think that merely wiring the nerves to a microcontroller would have been sufficient. We have been building guided missiles which can track to a target for the past 60-70 years without so much as a computer; it can't be that difficu
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I suspect they do need the AI. Think of the spinal cord as a 10,000 pair cable with none of the wires marked. Then they are all mashed together to break the insulation, then they are cut in an irregular fashion. Now you get to reconnect the conductors.
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Does medical science really not know which muscle groups are involved in walking, and how the body uses them to balance and stay upright? Do they really need an AI to tell them which nerves are being signaled when the patient is telling them, "I'm trying to walk now"?
I would think that merely wiring the nerves to a microcontroller would have been sufficient. We have been building guided missiles which can track to a target for the past 60-70 years without so much as a computer; it can't be that difficult to figure out walking.
You, sir, are an idiot.
Wishing for a nerve bypass (Score:3)
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