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Title: Neuralink gets approval to start human trials in Canada

Date: Thu, 21 Nov 2024 14:30:21 +0000
Link: https://www.engadget.com/science/neuralink-ge...

The first Neuralink clinical trials outside the US will take place in Canada.
Neuralink has secured Health Canada's approval to launch human trials in the
country, with the Toronto Western Hospital being the "first and exclusive
surgical site" for the procedure. The company first opened its Canadian
patient registry in March this year, but now it's actively looking for
potential participants. "Recruitment is now open," it has announced on X.

Under the CAN-PRIME study, Neuralink will embed its implant in the brain of
the participant so that it can interpret their neural activity. The implant
will allow them to control a computer or a smartphone with their brain
without the need for wires or any kind of physical movement. Neuralink says
the study aims to "evaluate the safety of [its] implant and surgical robot
and assess the initial functionality of [its Brain Computer Interface] for
enabling people with quadriplegia to control external devices with their
thoughts." What it learns from the trials could help the company find safer
ways to place the implant inside the brain, as well as to enhance the
technology's capabilities.

Neuralink's first human patient (pictured above) received his implant earlier
this year. He experienced some issues, wherein the implant's threads
retracted from his brain, though he seems to be doing well these days. On X,
he said that he will soon challenge himself to use Neuralink for 72 hours to
demonstrate what the technology can do. For its second patient, Neuralink
employed mitigation measures to prevent thread retraction. That patient was
already using computer-aided design (CAD) software mere weeks after his
surgery in July. At the moment, Neuralink is specifically looking for
patients who "have limited or no ability to use both hands due to cervical
spinal cord injury or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)" for its trials in
Canada.

🇨🇦 We’re happy to announce that Health Canada has approved the launch
of our first clinical trial in Canada! Recruitment is now open.

If you have quadriplegia due to ALS or SCI, you may qualify. Visit our
Patient Registry to learn more and apply.https://t.co/5BySJABkkO

ΓÇö Neuralink (@neuralink) November 20, 2024

This article originally appeared on Engadget at
https://www.engadget.com/science/neuralink-ge...
trials-in-canada-143021769.html?src=rss

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