For people with spinal cord injuries (SCIs), saving even a small measure of function can make a world of difference.
Retaining triceps function can mean being able to go to bed at night and get up in the morning, without having to wait for assistance.
Preserving hand dexterity will allow for independent feeding and bathing, or being able to drive a modified vehicle.
In very severe high-level lesions, saving one spinal ‘level’ can be the difference between relying on a ventilator and breathing independently.
In the trial, patients are given an anti-inflammatory drug –intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) - within hours of their spinal trauma.
Dr Ruitenberg’s team discovered in animal studies that IVIg therapy can reduce harmful inflammation and, most excitingly, improve the recovery from serious spinal cord injuries.
This pre-clinical work was supported by the Wings for Life Foundation and SpinalCure Australia, and helped pave the way for the clinical trial.
Recruitment officially commenced in January, and there are now three patients who have received this therapy at The Princess Alexandra (PA) Hospital, Queensland’s primary centre for spinal injury care.
It is too early to say whether they have benefited from receiving this therapy, but all have tolerated the treatment rather well.
PA spinal surgeon Dr Kate Campbell is heading up the trial with Dr Ruitenberg.
“One of the great benefits of IVIg is that it is quite safe and already used in the hospital for other conditions,” she says.
“As a result, we have been able to quickly progress this treatment from the lab to the clinic.”
CSL Behring is providing the IVIg, and funding, for the clinical trial, which Vice President R&D Strategy and External Affairs Dr Andrea Douglas says is a novel application for its flagship therapy.