I just hope the patient doesn't suffer the same fate as so many of Neuralink's lab animals. I'd sure have reservations about getting brain surgery at a place like this:
"The laboratory problems identified by FDA inspectors included missing calibration records for instruments such as a pH meter used in one of the studies. For another study, seven instruments including a “vital signs monitor” had no record of having been calibrated. Neuralink conducted experiments on hundreds of animals, including monkeys.
Other issues included quality assurance officials not signing off on the final study report or documenting any deviations from approved protocols or standard operating procedures."
This is a tough one I have some personal experience with as a paraplegic. While I would have great pause having such a surgery myself and I have had many due to my injury from carpal tunnel, cubital tunnel, spinal surgery and the list goes on...I would be extremely cautious about something this invasive in the brain.
The most problematic surgeries for me included being fitted with a Medtronic pump (twice plus a final removal...more on that in a sec) that sent medication directly to my spinal fluid allowing the baclofen that had a difficult time breaking the blood brain barrier when taken orally...to just be absorbed by my grey matter directly (brain and spinal cord) to control my spasms as I would frequently stand up out of my chair at that time and then collapse to the ground (spinal cord memory based spasm) or just spasm so violently in every muscle below my level of injury chucking myself out of the chair like a flopping fish out of water. Spoiler it was not fun and it took a long time to learn to control. Bringing my point back around as to why I'd have pause for an implant brain surgery as many of these procedures have some serious to straight up detrimental side effects they frequently don't do the best job warning you about.
I broke two of those Medtronic pumps within weeks to months of their install for example. One of those times I had ripped the catheter out of my spinal canal, was told it should have killed me from the withdrawal from baclofen as apparently it is extremely addictive when given via spinal fluid. And the second one they have zero idea why it broke. They just knew that it didn't pump dye out the catheter while doing active xray to detect it so there was no question the meds weren't making it out into my spinal canal...so yet again I dodged a lethal bullet from withdrawal they could not explain. And then there was the spinal meningitis I got when they removed the pump altogether when I refused to have a third put in, which really did try to kill me as I spent a month plus in the hospital recovering. Oh and for a bonus my spinal fluid drained every time I sat up for three of those weeks, even though I was told that was impossible...I'd either pass out or scream in pain according to the neurosurgeons if that were to happen...then a nurse saw it happen actively. The scar where they pulled the catheter out of my spine leaked spinal fluid profusely. They were shocked at my pain tolerance to handle my spinal fluid leak. I was also told later this leak was likely the cause of my meningitis as the leak gave a direct path for infection of my spinal fluid/canal.
My larger elongated point is for traumatic injuries like his, mine, etc. Quality of life considerations can sometimes make you willing to overlook potential risks from surgical intervention, even when you shouldn't ever think about it. Mexican stem cell therapy in the 90s-00s I am looking at you...popular when I was first injured but I saw it for the scam it was but some of my peers were not so lucky and it typically cost them their lives or diminished their quality of life severely and they had to pay for that 'privilege' out of pocket as insurance never covered it, for good reason (death, tumors, cancer, infections,etc).
As a paraplegic any game out there is typically playable in one fashion or another for me. Thus gaming has been a sanctuary for me as has building/repairing PCs. As someone pre-SCI I was a huge adrenaline junky...I raced on alpine skis in HS but was more known for my extremely high jumps/ cliff jumps. I loved jumping off cliff's on skis or high/cliff diving (started in 3rd grade), plus I skateboarded, rode mountain bikes, played football, soccer, etc etc. Going from that kind of lifestyle which is statistically common lifestyle among SCI patients (as is being a male 18-24...I was 20 and 21 for my spinal injuries) to a chair was a jarring experience to say the least and while I continued to do extreme sports like WCMX, football, downhill mountain biking, for some things I had to take that quality of life choice into consideration. I imagine it is the same thing for this guy. I mean hey he can game a little better now and likely play more games then he could prior with time and training.
Sometimes a short to medium term win that mostly likely ends with a long term loss is better than no win at all. So I can respect why this guy was willing to take this risk. To be fair someone has to do it at some point or no advancement would ever happen. All that said with the risk involved and track record of Neurolink as a whole, I don't know if I would have made the same choice but then again...who knows I am not a quadriplegic. Maybe if I was I'd see things much differently. I choose to take medication, for example, that ups my dementia risk because they make my pain and spasms tolerable. Its a choice many like myself are forced to make at one point or another. They are not easy choices to be taken lightly.
I do applaud this result in a patient and I hope for more/better advancements in the future yet I also fear how those desperate enough from an injury can and likely will be taken advantage of to achieve success. Now if someone has acclimated to their disabled lifestyle (typically takes 5 years according to therapist/docs) so they aren't being irrational trying to 'regain' their old life as many newly injured do, plus they understand all the risks involved (I mean all and not the extremely abbreviated cliff notes versions you typically get at best IME) and they are aware just how much of a guinea pig they're being, then more power to them. Heck I have guinea pigged a few times myself in test groups over the course of my injury with higher than FDA approved dosing on gabapentin...now approved as the new upper limit, I was in a control group for a medication test on paraplegics as I was already capable of physical function they were testing as an incomplete SCI (ie I can move with intention below my injury, much of my sensation is intact, etc) and they needed that to compare against paraplegics that were complete injuries with no feeling or movement...like a fully severed cord for example...to see if it worked for them as well as it did incompletes like me.
Anyways I look forward to seeing how this tech progresses but I do hope people won't disregard the cost in animal and human life in achieving such advancements. I fear thus far, that hasn't been the case enough of the time. Patients like this deserve out utmost respect and understanding, regardless if you'd be willing to do the same. So kudos and may the force be with him. (force mouse cracked me up)
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