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Spinal Cord Society of Australia

Spinal Cord Society of Australia

News & Events

Increase in spinal cord injury noted

 

The number of spinal cord injuries among the older population has increased dramatically over the last three decades.


Falls are a leading cause of spinal cord injury and this is becoming particularly true for the aging population. A new study from Thomas Jefferson University now reveals that spinal cord injury is becoming a bigger problem among the over-70s. Please go to the website for more information.

 

The researchers say that the number of spinal cord injuries has gone up five times in the last 30 years in the over-70s, compared to those among younger patients. The percentage of geriatric patients in the spinal cord injury population has, accordingly, gone up from 4.2 per cent to 15.4 per cent. The study involved a review of a database of 3,481 spinal cord injury patients treated at the Jefferson Regional Spinal Cord Injury Center. The researchers note that older people are at risk of spinal cord injury because of decreases in bone quality and an increasing risk of a condition called cervical spinal stenosis. Co-existing illnesses tend to worsen the outcome of spinal cord injury in older people as well. Thus, mortality during hospitalisation for spinal cord injury was 3.2 per cent for adult patients less than 70 but 27.7 per cent for those older than this. The corresponding figures for mortality a year after hospital discharge was 5.4 per cent and 44.4 per cent.

 

Susan Aldridge, Health and Age, March 26th,2007

Source
American Association of Neurological Surgeons meeting 19th March 2007

 

Lions News

 

The SCSA will be present at the upcoming Lions Convention in Sydney on  May 17th -20th 2007 where we will have an exhibition stand/booth which will allow Lions to learn more about what we are doing and how they can help. In addition Dr George Owen (himself a Lion), will give a short presentation to the convention on the Lions Club-funded Spinal Cord Fellowship and what their donations have supported during the year.

 

I addition, we will be hosting a lunch for all of the incoming District Governors where we will be making a presentation on progress and where we need more help from the various Lions Clubs around Australia.

 

For more information on the convention please go to their website: http://www.lionsclubs.org.au/Sydney2007Convention/

 

China Trials Announced in China

 It was recently announced that scientists were preparing for a large clinical trial in 2008 which aims to use stem cells to help 400 patients with spinal cord injuries in Hong Kong, mainland China and Taiwan grow new cells and nerve fibres. Stem cells from umbilical cord blood will be injected into the spinal cords of the participants, who will also be given lithium to help stimulate cell regeneration. The trial, the biggest in the field in Asia, comes as China is devoting significant resources into stem cell research.

Researchers are now giving lithium to 20 patients in Hong Kong in the phase 1 safety and feasibility trial. Lithium is a chemical element that is believed to boost cell regeneration.

In preparation for the large 2008 trial, which will involve 400 patients in 14 mainland Chinese cities, Hong Kong and Taipei, doctors in all three places recently agreed on the method to deliver stem cells into spinal cords. Stem cells extracted from matching umbilical cord blood taken from public blood banks will be injected into the spinal cords of the subjects, who will also be given lithium.

The procedure should hopefully help subjects grow new nerve fibres and "bridges" -- structures that allow the new fibres to reconnect with other parts of the spinal cord. The main outcome measure will be neurological motor and sensory scores and whether patients recover sensation. It has three measures: touch, pain which is assessed by pin-prick, and the third is strength of 10 standardised muscles.

The trial, the biggest in the field in Asia, comes as China is devoting significant resources into stem cell research.

Private donors are funding the US$26 million spinal cord clinical trial

Comment:Almost all of the work on both lithium and umbilical cells and SCI has been done in China – this is a combinatory approach which is the basis for the SCSA programme. We wouldn’t have chosen this combination but we wish the researchers well and we will keep you posted on progress.

See the links on this page for more details on the trial and more information.

 

 
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