This Tuesday, November 07, during his morning radio show, Jimmy Mohamed talked about a promising new treatment capable of curing certain Parkinson’s disorders! Find out more in this article!
A disease affecting nearly 10 million people worldwide
» It is the leading cause of motor disability after stroke, and the fastest-growing neurological disease in the world. In France, it is estimated that more than 270,000 people are directly affected by Parkinson’s disease, » explains France Parkinson.
Parkinson’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease. This means that you will experience the disappearance of certain neurons in the brain which are normally responsible for movement.
These neurons normally produce a chemical messenger called dopamine. This dopamine is the molecule of movement!
As a result, if the neurons that produce dopamine are destroyed, patients suffering from the disease will experience difficulties with walking in particular.
« Disabling gait disorders occur in around 90% of patients with advanced Parkinson’s disease, » recalls Jimmy Mohamed, MD.
Unfortunately, « most of the time, these gait disorders are resistant to the treatments already available, which seek to replace the dopamine that is lacking, » explains the doctor.
A neuroprosthesis capable of curing the walking disorders caused by the disease?
Scientists from INSERM and CNRS, working in partnership with Swiss neurosurgeons, have designed a neuroprosthesis to correct the walking disorders that occur with Parkinson’s disease!
« It’s a neuroprosthesis that we implant directly into the spinal cord,« explains Jimmy Mohamed.
As a reminder, « the spinal cord is the extension of the brain that runs along the spinal column and distributes all the nerves in the body . It’s thanks to this spinal cord that you can move and feel your arms and legs, » adds the chronicle doctor.
The principle behind this treatment? Insert a prosthesis directly into the spinal cord to stimulate it and enable walking.
As Jimmy Mohamed says, « to move you need a central command, which is the brain, with the dopamine that’s missing, and a peripheral command, which is the spinal cord and the nerves « .
This system sends small electrical currents to the spinal cord, stimulating the nerves and then the muscles, and restoring movement!
A first French patient has benefited from the treatment!
Researchers have been working on this project for several years, and recently a patient was able to benefit from it and walk again!
This is a French patient suffering from a severe form of the disease .
The doctors fitted him with this small prosthesis connected to a box placed under the skin, and after a few weeks of rehabilitation… he’s walking again! » He’s walking almost normally again, » says the doctor!
This neuroprosthesis therefore opens up new prospects for treating the walking disorders from which many people suffering from the disease suffer.
However, we’ll have to wait for larger-scale trials before we can market this treatment. But the early days look promising!
« It’s a trail of incredible hope, » says Jimmy Mohamed!