Trial reportArchives of physical medicine and rehabilitation2009
Lower thoracic spinal cord stimulation to restore cough in patients with spinal cord injury: results of a National Institutes of Health-sponsored clinical trial. Part I: methodology and effectiveness of expiratory muscle activation.
Trial report in Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation, 2009. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 3 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 37 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Spinal Cord Stimulation to Restore Cough
Evaluation of Wire Electrodes to Activate the Expiratory Muscles to Restore Cough
Spinal Cord Stimulation With Wire Leads to Restore Cough
Who cites it
37 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 70 citations in OpenAlex.
- Spinal cord stimulation to manage autonomic dysfunction after spinal cord injury: a systematic review.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2026Pooled it
- Physiotherapy secretion removal techniques in people with spinal cord injury: a systematic review.The journal of spinal cord medicine · 2010Pooled it
- Comparison of disc and wire electrodes to restore cough via lower thoracic spinal cord stimulation.The journal of spinal cord medicine · 2022Trial
- Effects of Lower Thoracic Spinal Cord Stimulation on Bowel Management in Individuals With Spinal Cord Injury.Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation · 2021Trial
- Complete Restoration of Respiratory Muscle Function in Three Subjects With Spinal Cord Injury: Pilot Interventional Clinical Trial.American journal of physical medicine & rehabilitation · 2019Trial
- Cervical Spinal Cord Stimulation for Functional Rehabilitation After Spinal Cord Injury: A Systematic Review of Preclinical and Clinical Studies.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Effects of withdrawal and re-application of spinal cord stimulation to restore cough.The journal of spinal cord medicine · 2025Article
- Electrical stimulation of the sciatic nerve restores inspiratory diaphragm function in mice after spinal cord injury.Frontiers in neural circuits · 2024Article
- Neuroprosthesis for individuals with spinal cord injury.Neurological research · 2023Review
- Impact of the cough stimulation system on the care burden and life quality of caregivers of tetraplegics.The journal of spinal cord medicine · 2023Article
- Narrative review of current neuromodulation modalities for spinal cord injury.Frontiers in pain research (Lausanne, Switzerland) · 2023Review
- Effects of restoration of cough via spinal cord stimulation on subject quality of life.Journal of clinical orthopaedics and trauma · 2022Article
- A Review of Functional Restoration From Spinal Cord Stimulation in Patients With Spinal Cord Injury.Neurospine · 2022Article
- Electrical epidural stimulation of the cervical spinal cord: implications for spinal respiratory neuroplasticity after spinal cord injury.Journal of neurophysiology · 2021Review
- Restoration of cough via spinal cord stimulation improves pulmonary function in tetraplegics.The journal of spinal cord medicine · 2020Article
- Complete Restoration of Respiratory Muscle Function in Subjects With Spinal Cord Injury: Interventional Clinical Trial.American journal of physical medicine & rehabilitation · 2020Article
- Targeted activation of spinal respiratory neural circuits.Experimental neurology · 2020Review
- Spinal cord injury and diaphragm neuromotor control.Expert review of respiratory medicine · 2020Review
- A Review of Different Stimulation Methods for Functional Reconstruction and Comparison of Respiratory Function after Cervical Spinal Cord Injury.Applied bionics and biomechanics · 2020Review
- Abdominal Functional Electrical Stimulation to Augment Respiratory Function in Spinal Cord Injury.Topics in spinal cord injury rehabilitation · 2019Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveEvaluation of the capacity of lower thoracic spinal cord stimulation (SCS) to activate the expiratory muscles and generate large airway pressures and high peak airflows characteristic of cough, in subjects with tetraplegia.
designClinical trial.
settingInpatient hospital setting for electrode insertion; outpatient setting for measurement of respiratory pressures; home setting for application of SCS.
participantsSubjects (N=9; 8 men, 1 woman) with cervical spinal cord injury and weak cough.
interventionsA fully implantable electrical stimulation system was surgically placed in each subject. Partial hemilaminectomies were made to place single-disk electrodes in the epidural space at the T9, T11, and L1 spinal levels. A radiofrequency receiver was placed in a subcutaneous pocket over the anterior portion of the chest wall. Electrode wires were tunneled subcutaneously and connected to the receiver. Stimulation was applied by activating a small portable external stimulus controller box powered by a rechargeable battery to each electrode lead alone and in combination.
main outcome measuresPeak airflow and airway pressure generation achieved with SCS.
resultsSupramaximal SCS resulted in high peak airflow rates and large airway pressures during stimulation at each electrode lead. Maximum peak airflow rates and airway pressures were achieved with combined stimulation of any 2 leads. At total lung capacity, mean maximum peak airflow rates and airway pressure generation were 8.6+/-1.8 (mean +/- SE) L/s and 137+/-30 cmH2O (mean +/- SE), respectively.
conclusionsLower thoracic SCS results in near maximum activation of the expiratory muscles and the generation of high peak airflow rates and positive airway pressures in the range of those observed with maximum cough efforts in healthy persons.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.