A combination of physical therapy and neurological implants has restored a man’s control over his lower body after 12 years of paralysis.
Gert-Jan Oskam was living in China in 2011 when he was in a motorcycle accident that left him paralyzed from below his hips. Now, a combination of brain and spinal implants have acted as a “digital bridge,” bypassing damaged parts of his spinal cord to help him to stand and walk, even over steep inclines.
At first, he was walking with the aid of a walker. However, the treatment also seems to have induced neurological recovery — more recently, Oskam has regained the ability to walk with crutches, even when the implant was turned off.
“For 12 years I’ve been trying to get back my
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