Repeated transspinal stimulation decreases soleus H-reflex excitability and restores spinal inhibition in human spinal cord injury.

ABSTRACT: Transcutaneous spinal cord or transspinal stimulation over the thoracolumbar enlargement, the spinal location of motoneurons innervating leg muscles, modulates neural circuits engaged in the control of movement. The extent to which daily sessions (e.g. repeated) of transspinal stimulation affects soleus H-reflex excitability in individuals with chronic spinal cord injury (SCI) remains largely unknown. In this study, we established the effects of repeated cathodal transspinal stimulation on soleus H-reflex excitability and spinal inhibition in individuals with and without chronic SCI. Ten SCI and 10 healthy control subjects received monophasic transspinal stimuli of 1-ms duration at 0.2 Hz at subthreshold and suprathreshold intensities of the right soleus transspinal evoked potential (TEP).

SUBMITTER: Knikou M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6762874 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature