Curt
Fakultäten » Medizinische Fakultät » Universitätsklinik Balgrist und Schweizerisches Paraplegikerzentrum » Paraplegikerzentrum » Prof. Dr. Volker Dietz (emeritiert) » Curt
Completed research project
| Title / Titel | Improving locomotor functions in spinal cord injured patients | ||||
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| Abstract (PDF, 14 KB) | |||||
| Original title / Originaltitel | Improving locomotor functions in spinal injured patients | ||||
| Summary / Zusammenfassung | The aim of this project is to improve locomotor function in spinal cord injured (SCI) patients at the Swiss Paraplegic Centre 'ParaCare' of the University Hospital Zürich by optimising therapeutic approaches and by designing a novel locomotor training robot. We suggest that there is a large unexploited potential within the spinal neural system of SCI patients to increase locomotor function after loss of supraspinal input. The core of this project will therefore be a) deepening of the theoretical understanding of spinal neuronal control and motor learning functions in human locomotion, and b) implementation of this knowledge into clinical practice. These two challenging tasks have inspired an innovative collaboration between the ParaCare's research lab (ParaLab) and the Artificial Intelligence Lab at the University of Zurich (AI Lab) with a link to the Functional Electrical Stimulation group of the Automatic Control Laboratory at ETHZ (FES group). The three groups will work together to develop a Neural Spinal Cord Model (NSCM). The NSCM will be a computational theory of spinal neural circuits which control the leg movements during walking and their learning capacity. It will be built using artificial neural network techniques. Since the functioning of the spinal locomotor centres is tightly coupled with the physical dynamics of the legs, the NSCM has to be connected to a Biomechanical Leg Model (BLM). The combination of NSCM and BLM will represent a neuro-biomechanical model of locomotion. |
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| Publications / Publikationen | Hiersemenzel LP, Curt A, Dietz V (2000) From spinal shock to spasticity. Neuronal adaptations to a spinal cord injury. Neurology 54: 1574 - 1582.Rutz S, Dietz V, Curt A (2000) Diagnostic and prognostic value of compound motor action potential of lower limb in acute paraplegic patients. Spinal Cord 38: 203-210.Curt A, Brühlmeier M, Leenders KL, Roelcke U, Dietz V (2002) Differential effect of spinal cord injury and functional impairment of human brain activation. Journal of Neurotrauma 19: 43-51. | ||||
| Keywords / Suchbegriffe | Spinal cord injury | ||||
| Project leadership and contacts / Projektleitung und Kontakte |
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| Funding source(s) / Unterstützt durch |
SNF (Personen- und Projektförderung) |
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| Duration of Project / Projektdauer | Oct 2000 to Sep 2003 |