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Man walks again - 7th July 2023

This man couldn't walk. His name's Gert-Jan and he's Dutch. He had an accident years ago. He was on a bicycle. He broke his neck. After that, he couldn't move his legs.

Scientists from Switzerland and France used special technology. It sends messages between Gert-Jan's brain and legs. Now he can walk.

Grégoire Courtine: "We managed to restore this communication with a digital bridge which transforms thoughts into action. That means implants located in the region of our brain that normally controls the muscles of the legs. We capture this thought with implants and transform it into electrical activations of the spinal cord to activate the muscles of the legs, as the patient would normally do to walk."

First, Gert-Jan thinks about moving his legs. His brain then tells his legs. It uses the technology. That makes his leg muscles work.

Now Gert-Jan can stand and walk. He can even climb stairs. But learning wasn't easy for him.

Gert-Jan: "It might not be for everybody because it’s not only implanting the system and then you can walk, it’s still a hard period of training."

Gert-Jan needed lots of training. It took months. But scientists are surprised. Now, Gert-Jan can do so many things.

Doctors first told Gert-Jan he wouldn't walk again. But he never stopped hoping.

Gert-Jan: "They told me, no, we can’t help you. I could move my arms and they said, like, be happy with this, but I never believed that I couldn’t walk anymore. At this point it was not based on anything, actually, but I still kept hope."

Scientists are excited. They have new plans now. They want to help other people like Gert-Jan.