- 作者：Stefan M. Golaszewski ; Jü ; rgen Bergmann ; Monica Christova ; Raffaele Nardone ; Martin Kronbichler ; Dietmar Rafolt ; Eugen Gallasch ; Wolfgang Staffen ; Gunther Ladurner ; Rol ; Beisteiner
- 关键词：Transcranial magnetic stimulation ; Mesh-glove ; Motor cortex excitability ; Somatosensory stimulation ; Neuroplasticity
- 刊名：Clinical Neurophysiology
- 出版年：2010
- 出版时间：February 2010
- 年：2010
- 卷：121
- 期：2
- 页码：248-254
- 全文大小：247 K
ObjectiveTo examine the neuromodulatory effect of whole-hand mesh-glove (MG) stimulation on motor cortical pathways, we explored motor cortical excitability before and after suprathreshold whole-hand MG stimulation using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS).Methods
Twenty-eight healthy volunteers (14 controls) were studied at baseline, immediately post and 1 h post-MG stimulation for 30 min. Motor thresholds (MTs), motor evoked potentials (MEPs) recruitment curve, short intracortical inhibition (SICI) and intracortical facilitation (ICF) after paired magnetic stimuli were evaluated.
Results
After MG stimulation the MTs were significantly reduced and slope of MEP recruitment curve significantly increased; furthermore, the stimulation led to a sustained decrease of SICI and increase of ICF in the contralateral motor cortex. These effects lasted for at least 60 min and were stronger 1 h post-stimulation compared with testing immediately after stimulation. A sham group did not show any differences before and after MG stimulation.
Conclusions
We provide a first demonstration that MG whole-hand stimulation induces increases in motor cortical excitability lasting at least 1 h. Both the strength of the corticospinal projections and the inhibitory and facilitatory intracortical mechanisms are involved. Synaptic modifications such as long-term potentiation mechanisms may underlie this stimulation-induced cortical plasticity changes.
Significance
Present results prove the MG stimulation to be a promising tool in neurorehabilitation.