Part 2 of 2 Spinal Cord Injury Research Update - “Blocking the blockers – can this help recovery from spinal cord injury?”

Posted by Kim Holden, 30 Apr, 2010

16/04/2010,University of British Columbia

A systematic review of directly applied biologic therapies for acute spinal cord injury by Kwon et al, Journal of Neurotrauma / Jan, 2010

The big picture

Concepts of critical reviews of a large number of studies have evolved in recent years, with the realisation of the need to capture all of the evidence required for clinical decision-making. Kwon and colleagues ask questions about “how ready is this particular therapy for clinical translation?” Because a systematic review, such as this, has no formal analysis it may be criticised on a number of grounds, and the question arises of whether this is the best approach for assessing this field. What can the reader gain from this? Indeed, on a personal note, I think a major reform of editorial policy would be necessary for systematic reviews, or meta-analyses, to yield meaningful insights.

What then is the take home message? Our understanding of recovery after spinal cord injury has largely revolved around neuronal mechanisms. However, the immune system and immune cells which are present in the brain and spinal cord recently have been recognised as powerful modulators of neuronal functions. Blocking the blockers of spinal nerve regeneration is just one approach to a chain of biological events that begins with spinal cord injury. We need more studies of drug kinetics, drug-drug interactions and importantly, immunogenetics before we can say that blocking the blockers will help recovery from spinal cord injury.

Link to abstract http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20082560

Link to PDF Kwon_SystematicReviewAcuteSCI.pdf

Dr Jillian Clark

Research Development Committee

Post Doctoral Research Fellow

Hampstead Rehabilitation Centre, SA

April 2010

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Contact: Kim Holden

Website: www.catwalk.org.nz

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The CatWalk Trust is a non-government funded non-profit organisation with the principal aim of raising funds to support the search for a cure for Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) paralysis. Whilst there are a number of organisations providing valuable rehabilitative support to those with SCI, the CatWalk Trust aims to challenge the current boundaries of research, enabling SCI victims to walk again. Ten years ago if you... More Info

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