How brain implants helped paralysed man walk again for first time in 12 years

A man who was paralysed in a bike accident has regained the ability to walk for the first time in 12 years due to an innovative technology developed by researchers in Switzerland.

Gert-Jan Oskam, 40, an engineer from the Netherlands, was living and working in China when he had a cycling accident in 2011. He severely injured his spinal cord and lost movement in his legs.

To help Mr Oskam walk again neuroscientists at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) developed they call a “wireless digital bridge” which is able to restore the connection lost between the brain and the spinal cord.

This digital bridge is a brain-spine interface which allows Mr Oskam to regain control over the movement of his legs, enabling him to stand, walk and even climb stairs.

Mr Oskam underwent two surgeries to implant electrodes in the brain and the spinal cord to make the digital bridge.

He said he is able to walk at least 100 metres or more, depending on the day, and when the implant is switched off he can walk on crutches, raising hope that technologies such as these could restore lost nerve function.

According to the researchers, this “digital repair of the spinal cord suggests that new nerve connections have developed”.

Neurosurgeon Jocelyn Bloch, who is a professor at the EPFL, said: “When we met Gert-Jan, he was unable to take a step after a severe spinal cord injury.”

Gregoire Courtine, a professor of neuroscience at the EPFL, said: “To walk, the brain must send a command to the region of the spinal cord responsible for the control of movements.

“When there is a spinal cord injury, this communication is interrupted.

“Our idea was to re-establish this communication with a digital bridge - an electronic communication between the brain and the region of the spinal cord that is still intact and can control the leg movements.”

The technology uses artificial intelligence to convert movement thoughts into actions, establishing a direct link between the brain and spinal cord regions involved in walking.

Prof Courtine said: “For the first time this digital bridge bypasses an injury, restoring the communication between two regions of the central nervous system that are disconnected.”

The team said their findings, published in the journal Nature, establish a framework where natural control of movement can be restored after paralysis..

Prof Courtine said: “What we observed is a digital repair of the spine, a recovery of neurological function that he has lost for many years.”

Mr Oskam said: “For the first time after 10 years (I was able) to stand up and have a beer with some of my friends, so that was pretty cool.”

Additional reporting by PA