Is muscle spindle proprioceptive function spared in muscular dystrophies? A muscle tendon vibration study.
Muscular dystrophies (MDs) are characterized by the degeneration of skeletal muscle fibers. The aim of the present study was to determine whether the intrafusal fibers of muscle spindles are also affected in MD. The functional integrity of muscle spindles was tested by analyzing their involvement in the perception of body segment movements and in the control of posture. Twenty MD patients (4 with dystrophinopathy, 5 with myotonic dystrophies, 5 with fascioscapulohumeral MD, and 6 with limb-girdle dystrophies) and 10 healthy subjects participated in the study. The MD patients perceived passive movements and experienced illusory movements similar to those perceived by healthy subjects in terms of their direction and velocity. Vibratory stimulation applied to the neck and ankle muscle tendons induced postural responses in MD patients with spatial and temporal characteristics similar to those produced by healthy subjects. These results suggest that the proprioceptive function of muscle spindles is spared in muscular dystrophies.
Ribot-Ciscar
Edith
E
Laboratoire de Neurobiologie Humaine, UMR CNRS 6149-52 Faculté des Sciences de Saint-Jérôme, Case 362, Marseille 13397, France. rc@up.univ-mrs.fr
Tréfouret
Sylvie
S
Aimonetti
Jean-Marc
JM
Attarian
Shahram
S
Pouget
Jean
J
Roll
Jean-Pierre
JP
D000328:Adult; D000842:Ankle; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009470:Muscle Spindles / Q000502:physiology*; D009136:Muscular Dystrophies / Q000503:physiopathology*; D020391:Muscular Dystrophy, Facioscapulohumeral / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009223:Myotonic Dystrophy / Q000503:physiopathology; D009333:Neck; D011434:Proprioception / Q000502:physiology*; D013710:Tendons / Q000502:physiology*; D014732:Vibration