If you want to do so much as lift a finger, an electrical signal needs to be able to travel from your brain down to the digit. A problem with the nervous system anywhere along this path — in your brain, spinal cord, arm, etc. — can cause paralysis in your hand, meaning you can no longer move it voluntarily.
Nearly 2% of people living in the US experience some level of paralysis in their arms or legs, but thanks to groundbreaking innovations in neuroscience, we’re seeing that forms of paralysis long assumed to be permanent can be reversed — and even more exciting breakthroughs are on the horizon.
