Categories

Link to wheelchair safety gear on sale at United Spinal online store.

Nonsensology

I wanted to try to create a Jabberwock, and I soon got my chance. [...]

Hoop Dreams in Mazar-e Sharif

| SPORTS ROUNDUP

Jess Markt (in white) brought his knowledge of wheelchair basketball to Afghanistan.

By Tom Scott

In late October 2009, Jess Markt, a 33-year-old Oregon native with a T6-7 spinal cord injury arrived at Kabul International Airport in Afghanistan’s capital city after an exhausting 30-hour journey from New York. Built in the early 1960s during a period of modernization, the airport was now primarily used by U.S. Armed Forces and the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in the ongoing War in Afghanistan. Markt’s grogginess melted away as international security forces with their automatic rifles at the ready stared with curiosity [...]

Doing Nothing is the Worst Possible Outcome for Health Care Reform

By Peggy Hathaway

Some people are fed up with health care reform (HCR) and think it may be just as well that Congress is deadlocked. The truth is, now is the absolute worst time to tune out from HCR, which in danger of becoming victim to petty partisan politics as the 2010 elections approach. If given a choice  between doing what’s right for all Americans in terms of reform and doing what’s right for themselves in order to get re-elected, don’t kid yourself, our representatives in Congress definitely need our input to make the best choice.

Final Report for the United We Ride National Dialogue Now Available

From our friends at United We Ride: www.UWRdialogue.org

What’s Wrong With This Picture?

Spot the error. [...]

United Spinal Honors Legal Team for Fair Housing Win in Florida

It took more than nine years and two federal lawsuits, but Francis Wenke and his wife Diane are finally getting justice. [...]

Olmstead at 10: How Have Community Services Fared

| LEGISLATIVE  NEWS

By Peggy Hathaway, Vice- President for Public Policy

In 1999, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the civil rights of people with disabilities were violated if they had to be in an institution in order to receive needed services and supports. Commonly known as the Olmstead decision, the ruling requires states to provide community-based services to people with disabilities in most instances.

Forward with Ethical Stem Cell Research

| LEGISLATIVE NEWS

By Andrew Morris, Director of Legislation

United Spinal Association submitted comments to the National Institute of Health (NIH) in support of ethical embryonic stem cell research. The NIH had issued proposed guidelines in response to an Executive Order that President Obama signed in March of 2009 that reversed the Bush administration’s ban on embryonic stem cell research funded in any part with federal funds.

Fight Against Polio Takes A Step Forward

A new global effort to end polio, Clabridine stalls, and SCI up among wounded in [...]

Reelability Film Fesitval: This Weekend

FOR COMPLETE SCHEDULE, TICKETS & INFORMATION VISIT WWW.REELABILITIES.ORG

Connected, Empowered and Rebuilt

A review of the assistive technology featured at the Abilities Expo in Atlanta.

What’s Next in Neurotechnology?

Neurotechnology companies provide innovative tools to improve quality of life for people with chronic medical conditions.

Sweating the Details of Stem Cell Research

A researcher talks about the kinds of work his team and others are doing toward realizing the potential of stem cell therapies.

Winter Blues

| Wheel Life

By Charles N. Roman

Stem Cell Facts in a Nutshell

Intelligently debate stem cell research with the facts. No one wants to get into a debate about stem cell research, only to end up looking like an uneducated halfwit. No matter which side you’re on, you should at least get the basic facts [...]

Wild Wheelchair Designs

Designers are rethinking the wheelchair in exciting new ways. (Now if only someone would design a system where people who need innovative wheelchairs could easily afford [...]

What Is Hemiplegia?: A One-Sided Life

The author’s MS has progressed in a way that leaves her left side completely paralyzed.

The Impulse Offers Independence for People with Disabilities

| TECH EDGE

By John M. Williams

About a year ago, I first started hearing about something called the Impulse that was raising excitement among people in the disability community who believe that assistive technology products increase their independence and improve their quality of life physically and psychologically.

The Impulse™ Bluetooth® technology is an access product specifically designed for persons with physical limitations, allowing them to use any muscle surface (face, jaw, neck, arm, leg, etc.) to control their computer. This device is particularly applicable for persons with degenerative conditions such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy or any [...]

Polio’s Kissing Cousin

| POLIO TIPS AND TECHNIQUES

by Dr. Richard L. Bruno

If you’ve read our research, you know we’ve found evidence that a shortage of dopamine in neurons that activate the brain is related to polio survivors’ fatigue. Dopamine is the brain-activating neurochemical, but it also turns on the neurons that turn your muscles off when they’re not in use. Without enough dopamine, muscles turn on when they should be off, creating the rigidity and tremor of Parkinson’s disease.

So, why don’t all polio survivors have Parkinson’s?

A Guide for the UD Perplexed

| Accessible Home

By Rosemarie Rossetti, PhD

Houses That Work for Life!: A guide to creating homes that provide security, comfort and empowerment for all generations. By Lisa Sandlin