Functional vibratory stimulation on the hand facilitates voluntary movements of a hemiplegic upper limb in a patient with stroke.
The use of a new device consisting of a small vibrator to deliver functional vibratory stimulation (FVS) to the arm resulted in improvements of flexion of the hemiparetic shoulder in a man with thalamic bleeding. FVS delivered to the palm enabled the patient to repeat flexing his hemiparetic shoulder to manipulate objects with his hand. The functions of the patient's hemiparetic shoulder and fingers improved after treatments using FVS for 1 month. We examined whether FVS of the hemiplegic upper limb could facilitate voluntary movements of the limb by increasing the excitability of the motor cortex or the spinal motor neurons using somatosensory-evoked potentials, transcranial magnetic stimulation, F-wave, and single photon emission computed tomography. Our results did not detect an increase of excitability in the motor cortex or in spinal motor neurons by FVS.
Shirahashi
Izumi
I
Department of Rehabilitation and Physical Medicine, Kagoshima University Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kirishima-shi, Kagoshima, Japan. izmine@m.kufm.kagoshima-u.ac.jp
Matsumoto
Shuji
S
Shimodozono
Megumi
M
Etoh
Seiji
S
Kawahira
Kazumi
K
D004558:Electric Stimulation; D004576:Electromyography; D005073:Evoked Potentials, Somatosensory / Q000502:physiology; D006225:Hand; D006429:Hemiplegia / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009044:Motor Cortex / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D009046:Motor Neurons / Q000502:physiology; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000166:cytology; D020521:Stroke / Q000503:physiopathology*; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon; D050781:Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation; D034941:Upper Extremity / Q000503:physiopathology*; D014732:Vibration