By Courtney Bartlett For The Daily Mail
Published: 23:04 BST, 22 April 2019 | Updated: 23:04 BST, 22 April 2019
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A cutting-edge treatment which can significantly restore movement to sufferers of Parkinson’s disease has been hailed as ‘beyond the wildest dreams’ of its researchers.
Patients previously left housebound are now walking freely after receiving electrical stimulation to their spines.
An implant has been developed to boost the signals sent from the brain to the limbs and vice versa. This enables the patient to walk normally, it is claimed.
A quarter of Parkinson’s disease patients have difficulty walking as the affliction begins to take its toll. Some start to freeze on the spot and even fall over.
Patients were able to gain back some of their independence after the treatment which enabled them to walk again
But the pioneering Canadian researchers behind the technique said the quality-of-life improvement to patients is immeasurable.
Professor Mandar Jog, of Western University in London, Ontario, said the results were ‘beyond his wildest dreams’. Speaking to the BBC, he said: ‘Most of our patients have had the disease for 15 years and have not walked with any confidence for several