Configuration of electrical spinal cord stimulation through real-time processing of gait kinematics

Capogrosso, Marco; Wagner, Fabien B.; Gandar, Jerome; Moraud, Eduardo Martin; Wenger, Nikolaus; Milekovic, Tomislav; Shkorbatova, Polina; Pavlova, Natalia; Musienko, Pavel; Bezard, Erwan; Bloch, Jocelyne; Courtine, Grégoire

doi:10.1038/s41596-018-0030-9

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Journal article

Configuration of electrical spinal cord stimulation through real-time processing of gait kinematics

Capogrosso, Marco Center for Neuroprosthetics and Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland - Platform of Translational Neuroscience and Department of Neuroscience and Movement Science, Faculty of Science and Medicine, University of Fribourg, Switzerland -
Wagner, Fabien B. Center for Neuroprosthetics and Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland -
Gandar, Jerome Center for Neuroprosthetics and Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
Moraud, Eduardo Martin Center for Neuroprosthetics and Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland - Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK. 4Department of Neurology with Experimental Neurology, Charité Universitatsmedizin, Berlin, Germany
Wenger, Nikolaus Center for Stroke Research Berlin, Charité-Universtitatsmedizin Berlin, Germany
Milekovic, Tomislav Center for Neuroprosthetics and Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
Shkorbatova, Polina Center for Neuroprosthetics and Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
Pavlova, Natalia Institute of Translational Biomedicine, St. Petersburg State University, Russia
Musienko, Pavel Institute of Translational Biomedicine, St. Petersburg State University, Russia - Russian Research Center of Radiology and Surgical Technologies, Healthcare of the Russian Federation, St. Petersburg, Russia - Saint-Petersburg State Research Institute of Phthisiopulmonology, Ministry of Healthcare of the Russian Federation, St. Petersburg, Russia
Bezard, Erwan University of Bordeaux, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, France - CNRS, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, Bordeaux, France
Bloch, Jocelyne Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital of Lausanne (CHUV), Switzerland
Courtine, Grégoire Center for Neuroprosthetics and Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland - Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospital of Lausanne (CHUV), Switzerland

2018

Published in:

Nature Protocols. - 2018, vol. 13, no. 9, p. 2031–2061

English Epidural electrical stimulation (EES) of the spinal cord and real-time processing of gait kinematics are powerful methods for the study of locomotion and the improvement of motor control after injury or in neurological disorders. Here, we describe equipment and surgical procedures that can be used to acquire chronic electromyographic (EMG) recordings from leg muscles and to implant targeted spinal cord stimulation systems that remain stable up to several months after implantation in rats and nonhuman primates. We also detail how to exploit these implants to configure electrical spinal cord stimulation policies that allow control over the degree of extension and flexion of each leg during locomotion. This protocol uses real-time processing of gait kinematics and locomotor performance, and can be configured within a few days. Once configured, stimulation bursts are delivered over specific spinal cord locations with precise timing that reproduces the natural spatiotemporal activation of motoneurons during locomotion. These protocols can also be easily adapted for the safe implantation of systems in the vicinity of the spinal cord and to conduct experiments involving real-time movement feedback and closed-loop controllers.

Faculty

Faculté des sciences et de médecine

Department

Département de Médecine

Language