Non-Invasive Spinal Electrical Stimulation 

NISE-Stim Certification Part1

by Gerti Motavalli

Presented by Gerti Motavalli, MPT
Hosted by Beelieve Pediatric Therapy

This course content is not intended for use by any participants outside the scope of their license or regulation.

📅 Course Dates & Times
Saturday: 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. (9 contact hours)
Sunday: 7:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. (7 contact hours)
Total CEUs: 16 contact hours

📍 Location
Beelieve Pediatric Therapy
10640 N Riverside Drive, Suite 200
Fort Worth, TX 76244

👥 Who Should Attend
Physical Therapists, Physical Therapist Assistants, Occupational Therapists
No previous knowledge of electrical stimulation required, but clinical experience is necessary.

💰 Course Fee
Early Bird (until Feb 21, 2026): $660
Group Discount (3+): $660 per person
Regular (after Feb 21, 2026): $690

🧠 Course Description
This 16-hour course provides in-depth, hands-on training in Non-Invasive Spinal Electrical Stimulation (NISE-Stim)—a cutting-edge treatment approach for children with Spina Bifida, cerebral palsy, spinal cord injuries, brachial plexus injuries, and other neuromotor conditions.

You will learn how to:

Test muscle-nerve function
Determine optimal stimulation parameters
Improve trunk, upper and lower extremity control using NISE-Stim
Design individualized home programs
Apply techniques during hands-on practice sessions
Watch and treat real clinical cases
💡 The course also includes an introduction to the Turtle Bracing concept—custom, inexpensive, and adjustable orthotic solutions for the trunk and extremities.

⚡ Up to 30 participants will have access to Chattanooga Continuum or EMPI Continuum e-stim units and electrodes during the course.

📧 Coordinator Contact: Allison Barrett

✉️ allison@beelievepediatrictherapy.com

 

CEUs: 16 contact hours

This course will be submitted for CEU approval in TX which will most likely appove it for the following states as well:

AL | AK | AR | AZ | DC | CA  CO | CT | FL  DE | GA | ID | IN | IA | KS | KY | ME | MA | MI | MO | MT | MD | MS | NM | NE | NH | NC | ND | OR | PA | RI | SC | SD | TN | UT | VT | VA | VI | WA | WI | WY

Please reach out to your state licensing board to confirm the currency and accuracy of this information. 

The following states are not pre-approved: MN, NJ, NV, NY, OH, OK, WV.

Participants licensed in states not pre-approved may file for individual approval by themselves.

Biography:

Gerti Motavalli is a pediatric physical therapist with over 40 years of clinical experience across Germany, India, and the United States. She is the co-developer of the NISE-Stim protocol (Non-Invasive Spinal Electrical Stimulation) designed specifically for children with neuromotor impairments such as Spina Bifida, cerebral palsy, spinal cord injury, and brachial plexus injury.

In collaboration with Dr. Gad Alon, a world-renowned expert in electrical stimulation, Gerti developed the first surface spinal electrical stimulation protocol for children, published in Child Neurology Open and presented at major conferences including the Pediatric Physical Therapy Conference (CSM 2020), the Spina Bifida World Congress (2023), and the International Functional Electrical Stimulation Society (IFESS) Conference in the UK (2024).

Gerti currently treats children both in person and virtually, and has trained hundreds of therapists worldwide in applying spinal stimulation safely and effectively. Her courses combine strong clinical reasoning with hands-on practice and real case demonstrations, making them highly practical and transformative for pediatric therapists.

Program Objectives:
1. Explain the required stimulation parameters and appropriate protocols/procedures used in pediatrics.

2. Describe the advantages, limitations, contra-indications, and indications for the use of electrical stimulation in the management of pediatric patients.

3. Discuss the various mechanisms by which functional electrical stimulation and spinal electrical stimulation can affect the peripheral neuromuscular, peripheral vascular, skeletal as well as central nervous systems.

4. Describe the procedures for nerve conduction testing.

5. Explain the application of lower spinal stimulation protocols and procedures.

6. Describe how to implement functional electrical stimulation in gait.

7. Explain electrode placement for plexus paralysis using upper spinal stimulation.

8. Select appropriate patients and implement surface spinal electrical stimulation in children with spina bifida or other neuromotor impairments.

9. Advise caregivers how to properly use the stimulation at home in to achieve more effective and efficient outcome.   

10. Explain the advantages, limitations, contra-indications, and indications for the use of Turtle Bracing for pediatric patients.

11. Fabricate a Turtle Brace and assess the Turtle Brace for good alignment and fit.                                                            

 

 

Class Schedule (subject to change)

Day 1

7:30 AM: Start

8:00–8:30 AM: Registration

8:30–9:30 AM: Electrical stimulation technology (electrical parameters, electrodes). What we must know about the stimulation systems

9:30–10:30 AM: Hands–on laboratory I: Sensory vs. muscle activation, twitch vs. tetanic contraction

10:30–11:00 AM: Research

11:00–11:15 AM: Break

11:15 AM–12:00 PM: Electrical excitability testing for peripheral nerve damage, upper and lower extremity, and trunk

12:00–1:00 PM: Introducing surface non-invasive spinal cord stimulation

1:00–1:30 PM: Lunch

1:30–2:30 PM: Demo patient: nerve conduction testing and spinal stimulation treatment

2:30–3:00 PM: Discussion of the evaluation findings and treatment approach

3:00–3:30 PM: Spinal Stimulation for club foot, nerve pain, CP, scoliosis, plexus paralysis, bowel, and bladder

3:30–3:45 PM: Break

3:45–5:00 PM: Hands–on laboratory II: Various placements and settings for surface non-invasive spinal cord stimulation for lower extremity, spinal stimulation on sensory level

5:00–6:00 PM: Hands-on Laboratory III: Spinal Electrical Stimulation for upper extremity and trunk for various impairments, spinal stimulation on the sensory level

6:00–6:30 PM: Questions

Day 2 Schedule 

7:30–8:00 AM (30 min): Review of key points

8:00–9:00 AM (60 min): Hands-On Laboratory: NISE-Stim for various impairments

9:00–10:00 AM (60 min): Functional Electrical Stimulation

10:00–10:15 AM (15 min): Break

10:15–11:15 AM (60 min): Hands-On Laboratory: FES for sit-to-stand transitions, bilateral reaching, gait, transitions, crawling, and unilateral reaching

11:15 AM–12:15 PM (60 min): Demonstration patient: assessment and treatment. Discussion of findings and treatment approach

12:15–12:45 PM (30 min): Lunch

12:45–1:45 PM (60 min): Five demonstration patients for class treatment

1:45–2:00 PM (15 min): Feedback on treatment

2:00–2:15 PM (15 min): Break

2:15–3:30 PM (75 min): Turtle Bracing lecture and hands-on fabrication of Turtle Braces 

Research:
Motavalli, Gerti, Jan J. McElroy, and Gad Alon. "An exploratory electrical stimulation protocol in the management of an infant with spina bifida: a case report." Child Neurology Open 6 (2019): 2329048X19835656.

Goutam Singh, PT, PhD; Anastasia Keller, PhD; et al.
Safety and Feasibility of Cervical and Thoracic Transcutaneous Spinal Cord Stimulation to Improve Hand Motor Function in Children With Chronic Spinal Cord Injury. Neuromodulation 4/2023, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neurom.2023.04.475

Kristin Girshin 1,2, Rahul Sachdeva, et al. Spinal Cord Neuromodulation to treat Cerebral Palsy in Pediatrics: POUNCE Multiside Randomized Clinical Trial 6/2023 Frontiers in Neuroscience, 10.3389/fnins.2023.1221809

James J. Laskin, Zeina Waheed,et al. Spinal Cord Stimulation Research in the Restoration of Motor, Sensory, and Autonomic Function for Individuals Living With Spinal Cord Injuries: A Scoping Review, Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation 2022;103: 1387-97, http://www.archives-pmr.org/

Parag N. Gad, Evgeniy Kreydin, Non-invasive Neuromodulation of Spinal Cord Restores Lower Urinary Tract Function After Paralysis, Frontiers in Neuroscience, doi: 10.3389/fnins.2018.00432

Samejima, S. Caskey, C. D. Inanici, F. Multisite Transcutaneous Spinal Stimulation for Walking and        Autonomic Recovery in Motor-Incomplete Tetraplegia: A Single-Subject Design. Phys Ther 2022;102: DOI10.1093/ptj/pzab228.

Anastasia Keller1,2, Goutam Singh 1,2, et al. Noninvasive spinal stimulation safely enables upright posture in children with spinal cord injury NATURE COMMUNICATIONS https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-26026-z

Solopova IA, Sukhotina IA, Zhvansky DS, et al. Effects of spinal cord stimulation on motor functions in children with cerebral palsy. Neurosci Lett. 2017;639:192-198.

Krucoff MO, Rahimpour S, Slutzky MW, Edgerton VR, Turner DA. Enhancing Nervous System Recovery through Neurobiologics, Neural Interface Training, and Neurorehabilitation. Front Neurosci. 2016;10:584.

Gerasimenko Y, Gad P, Sayenko D, et al. Integration of sensory, spinal, and volitional descending inputs in regulation of human locomotion. J Neurophysiol. 2016;116(1):98-105.

Lee NG, Andrews E, Rosoklija I, et al. The effect of spinal cord level on sexual function in the spina bifida population. J Pediatr Urol. 2015;11(3):142 e141-146.

Sayenko DG, Atkinson DA, Floyd TC, et al. Effects of paired transcutaneous electrical stimulation delivered at single and dual sites over lumbosacral spinal cord. Neurosci Lett.2015;609:229-234.

Shideler, B.L., et al., Toward a hybrid exoskeleton for crouch gait in children with cerebral palsy: neuromuscular electrical stimulation for improved knee extension. J Neuroeng Rehabil, 2020.

 

Please note that in the event of unforeseen circumstances, such as sudden severe illness or canceled flights, that prevent me from attending the course, I will refund the course fee in full. However, I cannot be held responsible for any additional expenses that participants may incur, such as travel or accommodation costs.