New robotic therapy is transforming the life of a Galloway man after he was paralysed in a horrific car crash.
Dad-of-four Luke Louden, from Whauphill, was left with almost no hope of walking again after the accident in August 2020.
But now he is dreaming of walking his daughters down the aisle thanks to an innovative therapy he is receiving at the Queen Elizabeth National Spinal Injuries Unit in Glasgow.
The 32-year-old suffered a broken neck and back, as well as multiple serious leg injuries, in the crash.
And for more than two years he was forced to contemplate the end of his life as he knew it.
Luke said: “I was a dairyman before the accident and when I had the accident I knew instantly I was paralysed.
“The doctors didn’t say there was no chance of walking, but they said there was a slim chance.
“It was really hard at the start and I didn’t really know what to do. I was really fit and active, so to lose the use of my legs was tough.
“Early in my therapy, I put so much work in and didn’t see any return, and I could feel my hope just draining away.
“To make things worse, it was in the middle of lockdown and I couldn’t see my family for months. That was really hard.”
However, in September, Luke became the first patient to receive treatment with the newly installed ZeroG Gait and Balance System, a robotic apparatus where a patient is supported during therapy.
It automatically synchronises with his movements to help Luke walk and prevent falls.
It is the first of its kind in Scotland.
Luke added: “Quite quickly I began to feel the benefits, and now there’s less pain, fewer spasms, I sleep better and I have lost weight. It’s also been huge for my mental health.
“It’s transformed my life and how I feel. I’ve gone from hardly being able to move to being able to walk 20 metres non-stop on the bars. My record on the ZeroG system is 57 metres.
“I’d love to keep improving but, to be honest, if I couldn’t achieve any more I’d be happy the way I am.
“Just to be able to stand, even if it’s with a frame, is amazing.
“If you’d asked me six weeks ago if I could even achieve that I’d have said don’t be daft. But now I can stand next to my kids.”
Luke’s wife, Anna, and children Anna, aged eight, Chloe, six, Mary, four and three-year-old Isaac have been his inspiration and support.
He said: “They have kept me going – especially my wife. I don’t know how I would have managed without her. I’ve had some really dark times, but now I can look forward with real hope.
“The dream would obviously be to walk my girls down the aisle, so I’m going to keep going, to keep trying, for Anna and all my children.
“Look what this system has done for me up to now – you never know what further advances are round the corner.
“It’s been tough, and the future is daunting, but the team here have been amazing and I know they’ve got my back.”
Luke has been involved in eWalk – one of two research studies using the ZeroG system – which involves patients with an acute incomplete spinal cord injury,which means there is some function below a patient’s injury, and who have been living with their injury for at least a year.
They receive intensive walking training with body weight support from the ZeroG system, alongside spinal cord stimulation.
Claire Lincoln, senior research physiotherapist at the spinal injuries unit, said: “There is an understanding that the more repetitions of a movement we can manage, the better the neurological recovery.
“Before we installed this system, we were often limited in the number of repetitions we could achieve, given that we needed up to four physiotherapists for any session and the patient would quickly become fatigued.
“Now we can achieve so much more.
“We are still learning the full potential of the system, but because of the support and added safety it gives patients, already, it has allowed us to try therapies earlier than would have been possible before.”
