According to a report in the Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation, a 26-year-old man, who can’t take steps due to an injury five years ago, was able to walk with the help of his brain-power.

This is for the first time ever when a person, who couldn’t walk because of a spinal cord injury (SCI), has firmly operated a non-invasive brain computer interface (BCI) system for over-ground walking in real time. This instance has given a hope for the possibility of developing BCI brain implants to help out SCI people in walking.

According to some surveys, the priority of people with paraplegia, because of SCI, is being able to take steps and walk again in order to lead an improved quality of life. Among them, 60% said that they want to use a BCI implant if it can help them in walking in any way.

So far, most people who became paralyzed due to SCI have achieved mobility with the help of a wheelchair, but the resulting sedentary lifestyle generally leads to additional problems, like osteoporosis, heart disease, respiratory illnesses and pressure ulcers. They not only results into further suffering to the individual, but also come as an add-on to medical costs.

The present study, headed by Dr. Zoran Nenadic of the University of California, United States, has shown that an individual can possibly use his own brain power to walk again. During the study, the participant went through training and tests for 133 days for walk preparation. He gained more control and was able to finish more tests in every session.