Mayo Clinic's approach

Your Mayo Clinic care team

Mayo Clinic's spinal cord injury team is led by doctors trained in brain and nervous system disorders (neurologists), brain and nervous system surgery (neurosurgeons), nerve and muscle physiology and rehabilitation (physiatrists), and bone and muscle surgery (orthopedic surgeons). These experts, along with Mayo's many other specialists, provide care as you need it.

Advanced diagnosis and treatment

Specialists at Mayo Clinic's Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation Program use advanced technology in diagnostic tests and treatment interventions for people with spinal cord injury, including robot-assisted treadmill training, functional electrical stimulation and other therapies. Therapists may incorporate physical therapy, occupational therapy, recreational therapy and nursing into the treatment plan when appropriate.

Pediatric expertise

Specialists in Mayo Clinic's Pediatric Rehabilitation program care for children with spinal cord injuries at Mayo Clinic's campus in Rochester, Minnesota. Children needing inpatient treatment receive care at Mayo Eugenio Litta Children's Hospital at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.

Individualized care

Mayo Clinic doctors and other healthcare professionals work with you to determine if locomotor training may be right for you. You and your family are considered an integral part of the treatment team involved in making decisions, setting treatment goals and planning your discharge arrangements. Your individualized plan of care integrates activity-based therapies of locomotor training into your home and community settings, including your daily living activities, transfers and overall mobility.

Lifelong follow-up care

Mayo Clinic doctors trained in physical medicine and rehabilitation and other staff offer a full range of spinal cord injury rehabilitation services for you, including inpatient rehabilitation, outpatient rehabilitation and lifelong care.

Expertise and rankings

Decades of experience

For more than 70 years, Mayo Clinic doctors and staff have helped people recover from traumatic spinal cord injuries and nontraumatic spinal disorders using a wide range of therapies including locomotor training and many others. Each year, Mayo Clinic specialists treat about 5,000 people with spinal cord injuries.

Nationally recognized expertise

The Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) has accredited the Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation Program at Mayo Clinic's campus in Minnesota. Specialists at Mayo Clinic's Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation Program have experience treating people of all ages with spinal cord injuries of all levels and severity.

Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, is ranked among the Best Hospitals for neurology and neurosurgery, for orthopedics, and for rehabilitation by U.S. News & World Report.

Learn more about Mayo Clinic's neurology and neurosurgery departments' expertise and rankings.

Locations, travel and lodging

Mayo Clinic has major campuses in Phoenix and Scottsdale, Arizona; Jacksonville, Florida; and Rochester, Minnesota. The Mayo Clinic Health System has dozens of locations in several states.

For more information on visiting Mayo Clinic, choose your location below:

Costs and insurance

Mayo Clinic works with hundreds of insurance companies and is an in-network provider for millions of people.

In most cases, Mayo Clinic doesn't require a physician referral. Some insurers require referrals or may have additional requirements for certain medical care. All appointments are prioritized on the basis of medical need.

Learn more about appointments at Mayo Clinic.

Please contact your insurance company to verify medical coverage and to obtain any needed authorization prior to your visit. Often, your insurer's customer service number is printed on the back of your insurance card.

More information about billing and insurance:

Mayo Clinic in Arizona, Florida and Minnesota

Mayo Clinic Health System

Sept. 13, 2024
  1. Duan R, et al. Clinical benefit of rehabilitation training in spinal cord injury: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Spine. 2021; doi:10.1097/BRS.0000000000003789.
  2. Fahey M, et al. The value of high intensity locomotor training applied to patients with acute-onset neurologic injury. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. 2022; doi:10.1016/j.apmr.2020.09.399.
  3. Lazaro RT, et al. Traumatic spinal cord injury. In: Umphred's Neurological Rehabilitation. 7th ed. Elsevier; 2020. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed March 20, 2024.
  4. Provider profile. CARF International. https://carf.org/provider/mayo-clinic-hospital-rochester-st-marys-campus-8020/. Accessed March 20, 2024.
  5. Rajendram R, et al., eds. Community-based activity-based therapy for spinal cord injuries rehabilitation. In: Diagnosis and Treatment of Spinal Cord Injury. Elsevier; 2022. https://www.clinicalkey.com. Accessed March 20, 2024.
  6. Nimmagadda R. Allscripts EPSi. Mayo Clinic. July 26, 2024.
  7. Lee HY, et al. Comparisons between Locomat and Walkbot robotic gait training regarding balance and lower extremity function among non-ambulatory chronic acquired brain injury survivors. Medicine. 2021; doi:10.1097/MD.0000000000025125.

Locomotor training for spinal cord injury