Paralyzed Man Can Now Feed Himself

April 27, 2017, Kitchener, Ontario

Posted by: Robert Deutschmann, Personal Injury Lawyer

A brilliant new technology has allowed a quadriplegic man to move his arm and eat, simply by thinking about it. Mr. Bill Kochevar became paralyzed below the shoulders following a bicycle accident eight years ago. Since that accident, he hasn’t been able to live an independent life, to eat unaided, to remove his glasses or comb his hair.

Doctors from Case Western Reserve University, in Cleveland, Ohio, published research in the Lancet about their work with Mr. Kockevar over the last year. Physicians implanted a neuroprosthetic which created a new connection between his brain and his right arm. This has allowed him to think about moving his arm, and it moving. He can now drink coffee, eat pretzels and has even eaten mashed potatoes all by himself.

The researchers are extremely pleased with the work and expect this technology to be widely available within five to ten years according to the study’s lead author Abidemi Bolu Ajiboye. They believe it will be effective in patients where the brain signals fail to reach the body part they were headed to due to spinal cord injury.

The procedure involves two steps. The first is to implant and electrode array into the motor cortex of the brain. The second step involves hooking the array to a computer interface that displays a virtual arm. The patient then tries to move the arm on the screen using his brain. After several months of training he had mastered the virtual arm. Doctors then implanted a network of 36 muscle stimulating electrodes into his arm and hand. These send the electrical pulses into the muscles causing them to move.  After more training involving manual manipulation of his arm, he was ready to move it himself with only his thoughts.

Mr. Kockevar says that although he can move his hand, he has no feeling of touch in it.

This is a huge step forward for those injured in car accidents. It may not allow for independent living, but it does allow for some independence for quadriplegics.

You can see an incredible video of Mr. Kochevar here.

About Deutschmann Law

Deutschmann Law serves South-Western Ontario with offices in Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge, Woodstock, Brantford, Stratford and Ayr. The law practice of Robert Deutschmann focuses almost exclusively in personal injury and disability insurance matters. For more information, please visit www.deutschmannlaw.com or call us at 1-519-742-7774.

It is important that you review your accident benefit file with one of our experienced personal injury / car accident lawyers to ensure that you obtain access to all your benefits which include, but are limited to, things like physiotherapy, income replacement benefits, vocational retraining and home modifications.