• Sheng Wang, Jike Lu, Yu-An Li, Hui Zhou, Wen-Fei Ni, Xiao-Lei Zhang, Si-Pin Zhu, Bo-Bei Chen, Hui Xu, Xiang-Yang Wang, Jian Xiao, Hongyun Huang, Yong-Long Chi, and Hua-Zi Xu.
• Department of Spinal Surgery, the Second Affiliated Hospital of Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, Zhejiang, China.
• Cell Transplant. 2016 Jan 1; 25 (1): 141-57.

AbstractWe did a clinical trial to determine whether olfactory mucosa lamina propria (OLP) transplants promote regeneration and functional recovery in chronic human spinal cord injury (SCI). The trial randomized 12 subjects to OLP transplants (n = 8) or control sham surgery (n = 4). The subjects received magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), electromyography (EMG), urodynamic study (UDS), American Spinal Injury Association impairment scale (AIS), and other functional assessments. OLP-transplanted subjects recovered more motor, sensory, and bladder function compared to sham-operated subjects. At 3 years after OLP transplant, one patient improved from AIS A to C and another recovered from AIS A to B, two recovered more than three segmental sensory levels, two had less spasticity, two had altered H-reflexes and SSEP, two regained bladder and anorectal sensation and had improved bladder compliance on UDS. OLP-treated patients had partial or complete tissue bridges at the injury site compared to cavitary gaps in sham-operated patients. The limited recovery suggests that OLP transplants alone do not have significant benefits but may provide a rationale for larger randomized trials or combination therapies.

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