Paraplegics walking again is not as far-fetched as you think!

The most common physical handicaps are commonly one sided weakness or paralysis. With intensive rehab many are able to walk again but with assistance such as a walker or cane. But things are changing for the better. Some of the new medical devices are rehabilitating people quicker and some devices are allowing people to walk like they did before!

What happens when you don’t have that ability to walk anymore and you lose, for whatever reason, the function of your lower extremities. Those that have helped you get everywhere—the mall, the bookstore, school, and even down just a couple steps. Does life stop? No, it keeps going and so do you. But what if you could regain it?

With technological advancements, we currently have what most would consider Star Trek-like machinery to help paraplegics walk. This bionic devices, skeletons on the exterior similar to arthropods (think scorpion), are attached to the person enabling him or her to take his or her first few steps in years.

On May 8 2012, a paralyzed British woman completed a marathon in 16 days—in a bionic suit. Her name is Claire Lomas, a former chiropractor who is paralyzed from the chest down, and she completed this amazing feat in her ReWalk bionic suit. There are three major robotic exoskeletons being developed including Rex from New Zealand, the ReWalk suit from Israel, and the Ekso’s Exoskeleton from Berkley, CA.

But, there is a catch: the cost of these exoskeletons is quite inaccessible to most of the population. Rex costs $150,000, ReWalk is about $69,000 (conversion from estimated British pounds) and Ekso’s Exoskeleton is $130,000. Perhaps, in the future (hopefully near future), as demand increases and more companies develop their own version of the exoskeleton, the price will become reasonable enough to help a majority of paraplegics.

Let us applaud Claire Lomas for her courage and determination and encourage innovation!  What do you take for granted?

Priscilla D. Chao is a regular contributor to a Look Forward and a recent graduate from UC San Diego.  She plans to apply to medical school this upcoming June and prays that she’ll be attending medical school in the fall of 2013.