Spinal Cord Injury Research Studies

We are proud to host an array of clinical trials for our patients so that they can take advantage of some of the newest treatment options for their conditions, and test some of the most recent technological innovations in neurosurgery. Our clinical trial efforts are assisted by collaborations with the Rhode Island Hospital (Level 1 Trauma Center) & Hasbro Children’s Hospital Emergency Departments, the Brown University Health Cancer Center, and the Norman Prince Spine Institute.

Below are some of our ongoing clinical trials:

Intelligent Spine Interface Study – ENROLLING Subjects; PI Jared Fridley, MD

Clinical research trial to understand how information is transmitted and processed in the spinal cord after spinal cord injury. Electrodes are placed in the spine above and below the site of injury, and both stimulation and recording performed. The gathered information is processed via a state-of-the-art artificial neural network-based interpreter. The goal is to create a bidirectional spinal cord interface to bridge the spinal cord injury gap. The proposed technology is agnostic to the level of the spinal lesion and has many sites (electrodes) to interact with the nervous system, which makes the therapeutic potential far greater than current technologies. Initial stages of the study are proof of concept, with the hope that a working ISI device will be developed in later stages.

InVivo INSPIRE 2.0 Trial – ENROLLING Subjects; PI Dr. Adetokunbo Oyelese MD PhD

Multicenter study of the probable benefit of the Neuro-Spinal Scaffold™ by InVivo Therapeutics in terms of safety and neurologic recovery in patients with complete thoracic spinal cord injury (AIS A). Patients are enrolled who present to the Rhode Island Hospital or Hasbro Children’s Hospital with acute spinal cord injury and meet all study-specific inclusion criteria, and are randomized to possibly receive an implantable, biodegradable device designed to encourage axonal regrowth into the damaged region of the spinal cord.