Objective: To determine the clinical efficacy of functional electrical therapy in the rehabilitation of grasping function for quadriplegics. Study design: Randomized intervention-versus-control trial. Setting: Rehabilitation hospital for spinal cord injury in Toronto, Canada. Methods: A total of 21 people with new spinal cord injuries ranging from C3 to C7 were randomly assigned to two groups: Control (N ¼ 9) and Intervention (N ¼ 12). The intervention was functional electrical therapy, which consisted of repetitive grasping exercises using a neuroprosthesis that applied surface electrical stimulation to the arm to generate and/or assist grasping movements. It was applied by registered Occupational Therapists in a clinical setting. Main outcome measures were: Functional Independence Measure (FIM), Spinal Cord Independence Measure (SCIM), and the Rehabilitation Engineering Laboratory Hand Function Test. Consumer perceptions of functional electrical therapy were assessed via qualitative interviews. Results: Differences between the Control and Intervention groups could be observed although they are not significant due to an insufficient number of participants. Consumer perceptions were positive, including improved Activities of Daily Living and self-satisfaction. Conclusion: Functional electrical therapy has the potential to be an effective treatment modality to restore grasping function in quadriplegia. It can be implemented by occupational therapists in a clinical setting. Further research is required to establish suitable indications for participant selection. In addition, a larger number of participants is needed to demonstrate statistical significance of the Functional Electrical Therapy.

For over 20 years, charitable organizations have worked to promote research that will cure the paralysis associated with spinal cord injury (SCI). When they began this quest, the consequences of SCI were thought to be permanent; that once damaged, the spinal cord could not be repaired. Today, the same organizations are credited with funding research that has realized many significant advances, brought new optimism and changed the outlook of researchers, clinicians and injured individuals alike. Progress in understanding the basic biology of spinal cord repair means that it is now a case of how soon useful treatments will be available, rather than if there will ever be anything to offer. With this in mind, many of the organizations that promote spinal cord research have formed an alliance to determine the ways in which their collaboration can hasten progress. The mission and objectives of this alliance, termed the International Campaign for Cures of Spinal Cord Injury Paralysis (ICCP), are described here.

Recent initiatives in the USA have increased the funding provided by several individual states into research into spinal cord injury (SCI). One such initiative came about following heroic campaigning by Don Reed, whose son Roman broke his back in a football accident, and Californians for Cure. The Californian legislature passed the Roman Reed Bill (AB750) in July 2000 to fund research into treatments for SCI within the state of California. The funds were given to the University of California system to administer, a responsibility that was passed to the Reeve-Irvine Research Center (RIRC) at the University of California, Irvine. Renewed on a year-by-year basis, funding currently stands at $1.8 million for 2002 ± 2003. In a deliberate attempt to broaden the research base, some of the peer-reviewed projects are based in labs with no previous experience of SCI research and, in these cases, animal work is carried out by trained personnel using the facilities at the Roman Reed Core Laboratory in the RIRC.