POSTED: 5:52 p.m. PDT July 29, 2003

Micki Flowers
KIRO 7 Eyewitness News Health Reporter

A new therapy is making a remarkable difference for stroke patients. The effects of a stroke can be devastating, and often they last a lifetime. But now a new technique called called neuromuscular electrical stimulation is helping stroke victims overcome their disabilities.

Cordie Chong suffered a life-changing stroke.

"My swallowing went. I couldn't swallow at all. And my speech was also affected," Chong said.

He spent the next nine months being fed through a tube.

A new technique, called neuromuscular electrical stimulation, reconnected his brain and throat muscles.

During the procedure, electrodes are placed under the chin. Then they trigger the throat muscles to close off the windpipe, and automatically swallow. But at the same time, the patient tries to swallow. This dual action is thought to re-educate the brain, and hopefully re-establish the nerve connections.

"I think this is a great new therapy for patients who have not responded well to traditional therapy," said Holli Weinstein, a speech pathologist.

Weinstein has been using the experimental treatments on patients like Cordie. She says they've had dramatic results.

"We've had patients that have gone for eight to nine months...not eating anything by mouth due to stroke, and they're on feeding tubes. And we've gotten them off feeding tubes," said Weinstein.

MORE ON THIS STORY More on a study, from the National Library of Medicine Information on Strokes From Stanford University

Neuromuscular electrical stimulation worked for Cordie.

"I'd say I'm 80% back to normal. But I'm eating everything I can," he said.

The device, applied twice a day until recovery, is not covered by Medicare or insurance companies. But it is affordable, at a few hundred dollars per machine.