Epidural Spinal Electrogram Provides Direct Spinal Recordings in Awake Human Participants

Little is known about the electrophysiological activity of the spinal cord during voluntary movement control in humans. We present a novel method for recording electrophysiological activity from the human spinal cord using implanted epidural electrodes during naturalistic movements including overground walking. Spinal electrograms (SEGs) were recorded from epidural electrodes implanted as part of a test trial for patients with chronic pain undergoing evaluation for spinal cord stimulation. Externalized ends of the epidural leads were connected to an external amplifier to capture SEGs. Electromyographic and accelerometry data from the upper and lower extremities were collected using wireless sensors and synchronized to the SEG data. Patients were instructed to perform various arm and leg movements while SEG and kinematic data were collected. This study proves the safety and feasibility of performing epidural spinal recordings from human subjects performing movement tasks.

Download Full-text

Locomotor Training After Human Spinal Cord Injury: A Series of Case Studies

Physical Therapy ◽

10.1093/ptj/80.7.688 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 80 (7) ◽

pp. 688-700 ◽

Cited By ~ 373

Author(s):

Andrea L Behrman ◽

Susan J Harkema

Keyword(s):

Spinal Cord ◽

Spinal Cord Injury ◽

Spinal Injury ◽

Sensory Information ◽

Locomotor Training ◽

Overground Walking ◽

Thoracic Spinal Cord ◽

Human Spinal Cord ◽

Thoracic Spinal ◽

Cord Injury

AbstractMany individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) do not regain their ability to walk, even though it is a primary goal of rehabilitation. Mammals with thoracic spinal cord transection can relearn to step with their hind limbs on a treadmill when trained with sensory input associated with stepping. If humans have similar neural mechanisms for locomotion, then providing comparable training may promote locomotor recovery after SCI. We used locomotor training designed to provide sensory information associated with locomotion to improve stepping and walking in adults after SCI. Four adults with SCIs, with a mean postinjury time of 6 months, received locomotor training. Based on the American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) Impairment Scale and neurological classification standards, subject 1 had a T5 injury classified as ASIA A, subject 2 had a T5 injury classified as ASIA C, subject 3 had a C6 injury classified as ASIA D, and subject 4 had a T9 injury classified as ASIA D. All subjects improved their stepping on a treadmill. One subject achieved overground walking, and 2 subjects improved their overground walking. Locomotor training using the response of the human spinal cord to sensory information related to locomotion may improve the potential recovery of walking after SCI.

Download Full-text

Sustained Muscle Contractions Maintained by Autonomous Neuronal Activity Within the Human Spinal Cord

Journal of Neurophysiology ◽

10.1152/jn.00200.2003 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 90 (4) ◽

pp. 2090-2097 ◽

Cited By ~ 17

Author(s):

Daichi Nozaki ◽

Noritaka Kawashima ◽

Yu Aramaki ◽

Masami Akai ◽

Kimitaka Nakazawa ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Spinal Cord ◽

Muscle Contraction ◽

Soleus Muscle ◽

Primary Motor Cortex ◽

Human Subjects ◽

Silent Period ◽

Muscle Contractions ◽

Electromyographic Activity ◽

Human Spinal Cord ◽

Train Stimulation

It is well known that muscle contraction can be easily evoked in the human soleus muscle by applying single-pulse electrical stimulation to the tibial nerve at the popliteal fossa. We herein reveal the unexpected phenomenon of muscle contractions that can be observed when train stimulation is used instead. We found, in 11 human subjects, that transient electrical train stimulation (1-ms pulses, 50 Hz, 2 s) was able to induce sustained muscle contractions in the soleus muscle that outlasted the stimulation period for greater than 1 min. Subjects were unaware of their own muscle activity, suggesting that this is an involuntary muscle contraction. In fact, the excitability of the primary motor cortex (M1) with the sustained muscle contractions evaluated by transcranial magnetic stimulation was lower than the excitability with voluntary muscle contractions even when both muscle contraction levels were matched. This finding indicates that M1 was less involved in maintaining the muscle contractions. Furthermore, the muscle contractions did not come from spontaneous activity of muscle fibers or from reverberating activity within closed neuronal circuits involving motoneurons. These conclusions were made based on the respective evidence: 1) the electromyographic activity was inhibited by stimulation of the common peroneal nerve that has inhibitory connections to the soleus motoneuron pool and 2) it was not abolished after stopping the reverberation (if any) for approximately 100 ms by inducing the silent period that followed an H-reflex. These findings indicate that the sustained muscle contractions induced in this study are most likely to be maintained by autonomous activity of motoneurons and/or interneurons within the human spinal cord.

Download Full-text

Cortical and Subcortical Contributions to Neuroplasticity after Repetitive Transspinal Stimulation in Humans

Neural Plasticity ◽

10.1155/2019/4750768 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 2019 ◽

pp. 1-13 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Lynda M. Murray ◽

Md. Anamul Islam ◽

Maria Knikou

Keyword(s):

Spinal Cord ◽

Neurological Disorders ◽

Evoked Potential ◽

Motor Evoked Potentials ◽

Human Subjects ◽

H Reflex ◽

Conditioning Stimulation ◽

Ia Afferent ◽

Before And After ◽

Novel Method

The objectives of this study were to establish cortical and subcortical contributions to neuroplasticity induced by noninvasive repetitive transspinal stimulation in human subjects free of any neurological disorder. To meet our objectives, before and after 40 minutes of transspinal stimulation we established changes in tibialis anterior (TA) motor-evoked potentials (MEPs) in response to paired transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) pulses at interstimulus intervals (ISIs) consistent with I-wave periodicity. In order to establish to what extent similar actions are exerted at the spinal cord and motor axons, changes in soleus H-reflex and transspinal evoked potential (TEP) amplitude following transspinal and group Ia afferent conditioning stimulation, respectively, were established. After 40 min of transspinal stimulation, the TA MEP consecutive peaks of facilitation produced by paired TMS pulses were significantly decreased supporting for depression of I-waves. Additionally, the soleus H-reflex and ankle TEP depression following transspinal and group Ia afferent conditioning stimulation was potentiated at intervals when both responses interacted at the spinal cord and nerve axons. These findings support the notion that repetitive transspinal stimulation decreases corticocortical inputs onto corticospinal neurons and promotes a surround inhibition in the spinal cord and nerve axons. This novel method may be a suitable neuromodulation tool to alter excitability at cortical and subcortical levels in neurological disorders.

Download Full-text

UPAYA PENINGKATAN KEMAMPUAN MOTORIK KASAR ANAK DOWN SYNDROME DENGAN OLAHRAGA BOLA KAKI DI GOLDEN KIDS

Jurnal Selaras : Kajian Bimbingan dan Konseling serta Psikologi Pendidikan ◽

10.33541/sel.v1i2.928 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 1 (2) ◽

pp. 139-151

Author(s):

Sinto Robindo ◽

Melda Rumia Rosmeri Simorangkir

Keyword(s):

Spinal Cord ◽

Down Syndrome ◽

Cognitive Abilities ◽

Body Movement ◽

Movement Control ◽

Fine Motor ◽

Educational Goals ◽

Motor Movement ◽

Brain And Spinal Cord ◽

Syndrome Child

ABSTRACT All aspects of development are very important in a person's life where the development of cognition, affection and psychomotor is well developed in accordance with its development, these three aspects can be said to be good and successful if the three aspects develop well. Like wise with the psychomotor aspect where between gross motor and fine motor are also balanced. Motoric is the development of coordinated body movement control between nerves, brain, and spinal cord (spinal cord or spinal cord). Child's gross motorization can be optimized by improving his motor movement coordination skills through physical activity in the form of coordination of body movements. Like throwing, catching, kicking, running, melopat, and maintaining balance. The condition of a Down Syndrome child who experiences weakness in the ability to think will affect in all aspects of his life. Down syndrome children have problems in cognitive abilities, effective and self-care abilities. This results in them needing special education. Basically, the educational goals that children with Down Syndrome want to achieve are not different from those of education in general. Because Down Syndrome children themselves are born in the midst of society. Keywords: football sports, gross motoric, down syndrome

Download Full-text

Effects of Haematopoietic Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation To The Chronically Injured Human Spinal Cord Evaluated By Motor and Somatosensory Evoked Potentials Methods

Cell Transplantation ◽

10.3727/096368911x633761 ◽

2012 ◽

Author(s):

A., A. Frolov ◽

A., S. Bryukhovetskiy

Keyword(s):

Spinal Cord ◽

Stem Cell ◽

Stem Cell Transplantation ◽

Evoked Potentials ◽

Cell Transplantation ◽

Autologous Stem Cell Transplantation ◽

Somatosensory Evoked Potentials ◽

Human Spinal Cord

Download Full-text

Multiple pathways for noxious information in the human spinal cord

Pain ◽

10.1016/j.pain.2006.03.009 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 123 (3) ◽

pp. 322-331 ◽

Cited By ~ 18

Author(s):

Takeshi Tsuji ◽

Koji Inui ◽

Seiji Kojima ◽

Ryusuke Kakigi

Keyword(s):

Spinal Cord ◽

Human Spinal Cord

Download Full-text

Autonomic dysreflexia associated with cervical spinal cord gliofibroma: case report

BMC Neurology ◽

10.1186/s12883-021-02271-z ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Hiroyuki Mizuno ◽

Fumiaki Honda ◽

Hayato Ikota ◽

Yuhei Yoshimoto

Keyword(s):

Spinal Cord ◽

Cervical Spinal Cord ◽

Spinal Cord Tumor ◽

Autonomic Dysreflexia ◽

Tumor Biopsy ◽

Intramedullary Lesion ◽

First Case ◽

Cord Injury ◽

Paroxysmal Hypertension ◽

Upper And Lower Extremities

Abstract Background Autonomic dysreflexia (AD) is an abnormal reflex of the autonomic nervous system normally observed in patients with spinal cord injury from the sixth thoracic vertebra and above. AD causes various symptoms including paroxysmal hypertension due to stimulus. Here, we report a case of recurrent AD associated with cervical spinal cord tumor. Case presentation The patient was a 57-year-old man. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed an intramedullary lesion in the C2, C6, and high Th12 levels. During the course of treatment, sudden loss of consciousness occurred together with abnormal paroxysmal hypertension, marked facial sweating, left upward conjugate gaze deviation, ankylosis of both upper and lower extremities, and mydriasis. Seizures repeatedly occurred, with symptoms disappearing after approximately 30 min. AD associated with cervical spinal cord tumor was diagnosed. Histological examination by tumor biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of gliofibroma. Radiotherapy was performed targeting the entire brain and spinal cord. The patient died approximately 3 months after treatment was started. Conclusions AD is rarely associated with spinal cord tumor, and this is the first case associated with cervical spinal cord gliofibroma. AD is important to recognize, since immediate and appropriate response is required.

Download Full-text