Next Steps Quadriplegia

Israel Weizmann's scientists to the rescue of those severely paralyzed

One famous case was the American “Superman”, Christopher Reeve, whose life was shattered as he participated in a horseback riding competition in the Jumping category, in Virginia.   Reeve's Throughbred, Eastern Express, balked at a rail jump, pitching his rider forward. Reeve's hands were tangled in the horse's bridle and he landed head first, fracturing the uppermost vertebrae in his spine. Reeve was instantly paralyzed from the neck down and unable to breathe. Prompt medical attention saved his life and delicate surgery stabilized the shattered C1-C2 vertebrae and literally reattached Reeve's head to his spine. Upon regaining consciousness and realizing the gravity of his situation, Reeve wondered to his wife Dana if "maybe we should just let me go." Whereupon Dana uttered the words that gave him the will to live: "But you're still you and I love you."   Thanks to discoveries and inventions by Professor Noam Sobel, electronics engineers Dr. Anton Plotkin and Aharon Weissbrod, together with research student Lee Sela, all of Israel’s Weizmann Institute of Science’s Department of Neurobiology, a unique device based on sniffing, inhaling and exhaling through the nose, might enable many disabled people to improve their mobility by navigating their wheelchairs themselves or even communicating with their loved ones.   Sniffing is a very precise motor skill that is controlled, in part, by the soft palate, which is the flexible divider that directs air in or out through the mouth or nose. That soft palate is controlled by several nerves that connect to it directly through the brain-case, and it is this close link that led Prof. Sobel and his scientific team to theorize that the ability to sniff, that is, to control soft palate movement, might be present and have been preserved even in the most acute cases of paralysis.

TRAVIS ROY FOUNDATION 2nd QUARTER 2011 GRANTS ...

Boston (July 8, 2011) – The Travis Roy Foundation is thrilled to announce that it has awarded $68,000 in individual grants to 25 spinal cord injury survivors across the United States.   Travis Roy, the Foundation’s Founder, made the announcement earlier this week.  As a Boston-based 501(c)(3) non-profit, the Travis Roy Foundation distributes grants on a quarterly basis to spinal cord injury survivors in financial need and to research facilities investigating a cure for paralysis.  It is their hope that these grants will improve the every day quality of life for the recipients.

The 25 recipients who received grants this quarter included applicants of all ages from Maine, down to Georgia, up to Minnesota, and across to the state of Washington. Grants ranged widely from $668 for a computer to $7,500 for home modification for an outside platform lift.  Other funds were awarded for vehicle lifts and modifications, wheelchairs, and home modifications-both inside and out- for wider door frames, ramps, and shower frames, just to name a few.

“It is always a difficult process for the Foundation board to decide which grant applicants will receive funding. I wish we could help out everyone that applies,” said Travis Roy.  “But at the same time I’m excited to know that we have helped out 25 spinal cord injured survivors and their families. Having the right to adaptive equipment will help remove one more barrier”.

Recipients this quarter included:

Daniel, Tennessee — quadriplegic. Daniel was injured in a car accident in 2010 and was left a quadriplegic.  A father of three, young children, Daniel and his family will need some home modifications made so that he can have access to the bathroom, such as a roll in shower and shower chair.  The TRF provided Daniel with a $4,000 grant towards these modifications.

Jennifer, California — paraplegic. In 2008, Jennifer was involved in a sledding accident.  Jennifer immensely desires to overcome her injury by regaining her independence: being able to drive herself to therapy, school and other locations to lift some of her family’s recent financial burdens. The TRF gave Jennifer a grant valued at $1,085 towards vehicle modifications so that she can take that next step towards becoming independent.

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