Stem cells are bringing once wheelchair ridden people onto their feet. After receiving injections of stem cells into the matter of their brains, participants saw improvements in their speech and arm movements in addition to being able to walk again.
The trial which was run by SanBio of Mountain View, California was the second to test the effect of stem cell injections on disabilities that are the result of a stroke. Gary Steinberg, a neurosurgeon at Stanford University was on the team that performed the procedure on 18 participants.
He said, “The most dramatic improvements were in strength, coordination, ability to walk, the ability to use hands and the ability to communicate especially in those whose speech had been damaged by the stroke,” says Steinberg. Each volunteer received either 2.5, 5, or 10 million cells from the bone marrow of donors.
Steinberg continues to say, “We think the cells change the adult brain, which repairs very well. They are secreting all sorts of growth factors, which aid repair, and which also alter the immune system to get rid of inflammation that otherwise obstructs repair.”
Everybody in the trial made improvements, improving on average by 11.4%.