Paralysed dogs walk again

2004-12-06 13:50

Rick Callahan

Indianapolis - Dogs with paralysed hind legs walked again after getting a shot of a chemical cousin of antifreeze that helped repair nerve cells in their damaged spinal cords, scientists reported.

Purdue University researchers who led the project hope the approach can soon be tried in people.

The treatment only worked on dogs given the injections within about three days of their injury. Some dogs not given the injections eventually walked again, but those getting the new treatment had a dramatically higher recovery rate.

In one case, a dachshund named Oscar was initially sent home with a wheel cart and little hope of recovery after a serious injury.

Soon after the dog got the chemical treatment, he began walking, although his back legs work in unison, giving him an unusual gait.

In the study, 19 paraplegic dogs were injected with polyethylene glycol, or PEG, a non toxic liquid polymer composed of the same type of molecules found in antifreeze.

Within eight weeks, 13 of the 19 canines, about 68%, were able to walk, some almost as well as before their injury.

The dogs were injected with PEG after their owners brought them to the researchers' labs and after standard surgery and steroids to reduce inflammation.

Among a group of 24 dogs that received just the standard surgery and rehabilitation therapies, only about 25% regained the same level of mobility, feeling and bodily functions, with about 62% remaining paraplegic.

The study's findings appear in the December issue of the Journal of Neurotrauma.

- AP