NEUROSCIENCE AND PAIN PRIORITY RESEARCH AREA A SNAPSHOT OF ACTIVITY
Innovative approach to reduce the impact of serious spinal cord injuries
A simple yet smart approach may hold the key to greatly improved health for those with life-changing spinal cord injuries. Researchers from the Kolling Institute’s John Walsh Centre for Rehabilitation Research launched a project to assess whether a specific breathing technique can improve many of the challenges faced by people with a spinal cord injury, like chronic pain, life threatening unstable blood pressure, fatigue and poor mood. The project, being run by clinician researchers at Royal North Shore Hospital, will see participants randomly allocated to two groups. One group will continue with their usual care, while the other will undergo a 10-week specialised program involving guided breathing practice using computer feedback of heart rate function, and psychological strategies like mindfulness and visualisation techniques. Study lead Professor Ashley Craig is looking forward to the unique project, with more than 300 adults suffering a spinal cord injury in NSW every year. “Spinal cord injuries can have a devastating impact, with a broad range of short and long-term health issues, including some which can be life-threatening like unstable blood pressure,” said Professor Craig, Professor of Rehabilitation Studies at the University of Sydney and the Kolling Institute. “Clinicians currently rely on a host of pain management and treatment approaches, but our team is keen to measure the benefits of this innovative breathing technique to determine if it could be an effective addition to existing treatment strategies. “Yoga enthusiasts have long used rhythmic breathing to achieve tranquillity of the mind, and we now know that the way we breathe regulates our nervous system, in turn affecting our blood pressure and our ability to recover from stress.
“Our study aims to determine how rhythmic breathing can help people with a disrupted nervous system as a result of their spinal cord injury. It will assess whether the rhythmic breathing and importantly, the feedback of heart function can improve the functioning of the nervous system. “A disrupted nervous system can be likened to a car without brakes, with limited moderation of the effects of the nervous system.
Professor Ashley Craig (second from right back row) with the John Walsh Centre for Rehabilitation Research team
20 Kolling Institute Year in Review 2022
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