Search results for "Somatosensory"
showing 10 items of 272 documents
Evoked potential study in facio-scapulo-humeral muscular dystrophy.
1997
Nerve conduction velocities (NCVs), somatosensory (SEPs) and auditory evoked potentials (BAEPs) were recorded in 9 patients with facio-scapulo-humeral dystrophy (FSHD) and in 20 age-matched controls. In FSHD patients a significant increase of the nerve distal sensory latencies and of the absolute SEP latencies revealed a subclinical involvement of the afferent sensory pathways, as well as the abnormal slowing of the later components of the BAEPs, pointed to a central auditory dysfunction. Moreover all patients underwent brain MRI that showed the presence of white matter hyperintense lesions in 4 of them (44%). No correlations were found between individual or total number of SEP and BAEP abn…
Influence of somatosensory input on motor function in patients with chronic stroke.
2004
In healthy volunteers, reduction of somatosensory input from one hand leads to rapid performance improvements in the other hand. Thus, it is possible that reduction of somatosensory input from the healthy hand can influence motor function in the paretic hand of chronic stroke patients with unilateral hand weakness. To test this hypothesis, we had 13 chronic stroke patients perform motor tasks with the paretic hand and arm during cutaneous anesthesia of the healthy hand and healthy foot in separate sessions. Performance of a finger tapping task, but not a wrist flexion task, improved significantly with anesthesia of the hand, but not the foot. This effect progressed with the duration of anes…
Are media reports able to cause somatic symptoms attributed to WiFi radiation? An experimental test of the negative expectation hypothesis
2017
People suffering from idiopathic environmental intolerance attributed to electromagnetic fields (IEI-EMF) experience numerous non-specific symptoms that they attribute to EMF. The cause of this condition remains vague and evidence shows that psychological rather than bioelectromagnetic mechanisms are at work. We hypothesized a role of media reports in the etiology of IEI-EMF and investigated how somatosensory perception is affected. 65 healthy participants were instructed that EMF exposure can lead to enhanced somatosensory perception. Participants were randomly assigned to watch either a television report on adverse health effects of EMF or a neutral report. During the following experiment…
Altered tactile localization and spatiotemporal integration in complex regional pain syndrome patients
2018
Background In complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), altered perception of the affected hand and neglect-like symptoms of the affected body side are common features. In this study, we presented tactile stimuli to the affected hands in CRPS patients and matched healthy controls. Methods The participants' task was to point at the perceived positions of the stimuli using a tracking device. The spatial coordinates of the perceived positions were analysed for accuracy and consistency. We also presented patterns consisting of two stimuli at distinct positions with a delay of 100 ms. These patterns are known to induce spatiotemporal integration ("sensory saltation"). Results CRPS patients were les…
Long-Term Physical Activity May Modify Brain Structure and Function: Studies in Young Healthy Twins
2019
Background: Physical activity (PA) is said to be beneficial to many bodily functions. However, the effects of PA in the brain are still inadequately known. The authors aimed to uncover possible brain modulation linked with PA. Here, they combine 4 of their studies with monozygotic twins, who were within-pair discordant in PA for a minimum of 1 year. Methods: The authors performed brain imaging, brain electrophysiology, and cardiovascular and body composition assessments, and collected questionnaire-based data. The present synopsis elucidates the differences associated with differing PA history in conditions without genetic variability. They present new structural and electrophysiological re…
A novel mobile application to determine mandibular and tongue laterality discrimination in women with chronic temporomandibular disorder.
2020
Background Chronic pain from temporomandibular disorders (TMDs) is caused by a somatosensory disturbance due to sustained activation of central nervous system nociceptive pathways, which can induce changes in neuroplasticity in the thalamus, basal ganglia and limbic system, as well as disturbances in the somatosensory, prefrontal and orbitofrontal cortex and cognitive impairment. The main objective of this study was to determine the discrimination capacity of mandibular and tongue laterality between women with chronic TMDs and asymptomatic women. Material and Methods This descriptive-comparative study examined 2 groups with a total of 30 women. All participants were between the ages of 23 a…
Different neuronal contribution to N20 somatosensory evoked potential and to CO2 laser evoked potentials: an intracerebral recording study
2004
Abstract Objective : To investigate the possible contribution of the primary somatosensory area (SI) to pain sensation. Methods : Depth recordings of CO 2 laser evoked potentials (LEPs) and somatosensory evoked potentials (SEPs) were performed in an epileptic patient with a stereotactically implanted electrode (Talairach coordinates y =−23, z =40) that passed about 10 mm below the hand representation in her left SI area, as assessed by the source of the N20 SEP component. Results : The intracerebral electrode was able to record the N20 SEP component after non-painful electrical stimulation of her right median nerve. The N20 potential showed a phase reversal in the bipolar montage (at about …
Differential nociceptive deficits in patients with borderline personality disorder and self-injurious behavior: laser-evoked potentials, spatial disc…
2003
Approximately 70-80% of women meeting criteria for borderline personality disorder (BPD) report attenuated pain perception or analgesia during non-suicidal, intentional self-mutilation. The aim of this study was to use laser-evoked potentials (LEPs) and psychophysical methods to differentiate the factors that may underlie this analgesic state. Ten unmedicated female patients with BPD (according to DSM-IV) and 14 healthy female control subjects were investigated using brief radiant heat pulses generated by a thulium laser and five-channel LEP recording. Heat pulses were applied as part of a spatial discrimination task (two levels of difficulty) and during a mental arithmetic task. BPD patien…
Dipole Source Analysis of Laser-Evoked Subdural Potentials Recorded From Parasylvian Cortex in Humans
2003
The location of the human nociceptive area(s) near the Sylvian fissure is still controversial in spite of evidence from imaging and evoked potential studies that noxious heat stimuli activate somatosensory areas in that region. Some studies have suggested the secondary somatosensory cortex (SII) on the upper bank of the Sylvian fissure posterior to the central sulcus, others the anterior insula or parietal area 7b. In this study, we applied dipole source analysis techniques to laser-evoked potentials (LEPs) that were recorded from subdural grid electrodes in three patients. As a functional marker, auditory-evoked potentials (AEPs) with a generator on the opposite bank of the Sylvian fissur…
Functional MRI of human primary somatosensory and motor cortex during median nerve stimulation.
1999
Abstract Objectives: Somatosensory evoked potential (SEP) studies suggested that some early cortical SEP components may be generated in the primary motor cortex (M1) rather than the primary somatosensory cortex (S1). Methods: We now used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to study activation of S1 and M1 by electrical median nerve stimulation in healthy volunteers. Results: The hand areas of both S1 and M1 showed significant activation (correlation coefficients >0.45) in 7 of 9 subjects (activated volume S1>M1). For comparison, a sequential finger opposition task significantly activated S1 in 7 and M1 in all 9 subjects (activated volume M1>S1). Conclusions: These data show that th…