Caption: Genís Prat-Ortega, assistant professor of neurological surgery, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh
By Megumi Barclay
Photo credit: UPMC and Pitt Health Sciences
The Clinical Research Forum will honor Genís Prat-Ortega, assistant professor of neurological surgery, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, with a 2026 Top Ten Clinical Research Achievement Award for his work as a co-contributor on the paper, “First In-Human Study of Epidural Spinal Cord Stimulation in Individuals With Spinal Muscular Atrophy,” at a ceremony in Washington, D.C., in May, 2026.
The first-in-human pilot study, done with Pitt School of Medicine mentors, Marco Capogrosso, assistant professor of neurological surgery, and Elvira Pirondini, assistant professor of physical medicine and rehabilitation, and others, helped to restore movement and quality of life for three patients with a neurodegenerative disease.
The Clinical Research Forum holds an annual national competition to identify 10 of the most groundbreaking advances in clinical research. The competition highlights major innovations in biomedicine, with awardees selected based on the originality and scientific rigor of their work, their contributions to understanding human disease and physiology, and the potential of their research to advance the diagnosis, prevention and treatment of disease.
The committee selected Prat-Ortega for his research focused on developing a neurostimulation technique to reverse neuron dysfunction in spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). The condition is characterized by the degeneration and dysfunction of motor neurons, which control muscle contraction, leading to progressive weakness and paralysis.
Three patients with SMA received temporary spinal cord stimulation implants for one month, receiving stimulation for approximately two hours per day, five days per week. The results showed significant improvements in muscle strength, gait quality, endurance and fatigue, with participants also reporting meaningful gains in quality of life. The research team is now pursuing larger, long-term clinical trials to evaluate the sustained efficacy and broader therapeutic potential of this approach.
“Thanks to our study participants, who shared with me what it means to live with physical disabilities,” Prat-Ortega said. “They are truly heroes, and it has been an amazing journey to work with them.”