Sympathetic sudomotor neural function in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
In patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), sudomotor and vasomotor function have been considered to be impaired based on sympathetic skin response (SSR) or cutaneous blood flow measurements. We evaluated sympathetic sudomotor and vasoconstrictive neural function in ALS. We simultaneously recorded SSR, skin blood flow, and skin sympathetic nerve activity (SSNA) by microneurography in 20 patients with sporadic ALS and 20 healthy controls. Resting frequency of SSNA was significantly higher in ALS patients than in controls (p <0.05), but the increase of SSNA associated with mental arithmetic was smaller in ALS patients than controls (p <0.05). ALS patients also exhibited slight prolongation of SSNA reflex latencies compared with controls (p <0.05). In conclusion, sympathetic hyperactivity was observed in relation to sudomotor and vasoconstrictive skin responses. Since SSNA reflex latencies reflect central sympathetic function, the central autonomic pathways may be slightly impaired in patients with ALS.
Shindo
Kazumasa
K
Department of Neurology, University of Yamanashi Hospital, Yamanashi, Japan. kshindo@yamanashi.ac.jp
Watanabe
Harue
H
Ohta
Emiko
E
Nagasaka
Takamura
T
Shiozawa
Zenji
Z
Takiyama
Yoshihisa
Y
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000690:Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008433:Mathematics; D008875:Middle Aged; D009119:Muscle Contraction; D009130:Muscle, Smooth / Q000294:innervation; D011930:Reaction Time; D012021:Reflex, Abnormal; D012867:Skin / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000294:innervation; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000503:physiopathology; D013545:Sweat Glands / Q000294:innervation*; D017779:Sympathetic Fibers, Postganglionic / Q000503:physiopathology*; D014661:Vasoconstriction