The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has awarded $13.5 million to neurosurgeons and engineers at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Md., to develop devices for patients with spinal cord injuries.
The devices will use ultrasound technology to help physicians monitor and treat changes in blood flow and prevent tissue death that occurs after spinal cord injuries.
Nicholas Theodore, MD, professor of neurosurgery and biomedical engineering, and Amir Manbachi, PhD, assistant professor of neurosurgery and biomedical engineering at Johns Hopkins, are tasked with bringing the technology to human use within five years.
Their goal is to optimize the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to the spinal cord by using ultrasound technology to stimulate blood vessels and tissue at the site of injury.
Researchers believe this can prevent further damage to the spinal cord, which can result in increased inflammation and pain and worsening paralysis.