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(Stroke. 2006;37:246.)
© 2006 American Heart Association, Inc.

Research Reports

Effects of Somatosensory Stimulation on Use-Dependent Plasticity in Chronic Stroke

From the Human Cortical Physiology Section (L.S., C.W.-H.W., A.K.-L., L.G.C.) National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke/National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Md; Department of Neurology (L.S.), Program in Rehabilitation, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC; Department of Neurology (A.K.-L.), Motor Laboratory and Movement Disorders Center, University Hospital Inselspital, Bern Switzerland.

Correspondence to Dr Lumy Sawaki, Department of Neurology, Program in Rehabilitation, Medical Center Blvd, Sticht Center, Ground Floor, Winston-Salem, NC 27157. E-mail lsawaki{at}wfubmc.edu

Background and Purpose— There is a need to develop strategies to enhance the beneficial effects of motor training, including use-dependent plasticity (UDP), in neurorehabilitation. Peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) modulates motor cortical excitability in healthy humans and could influence training effects in stroke patients.

Methods— We compared the ability of PNS applied to the (1) arm, (2) leg, and (3) idle time to influence training effects in the paretic hand in 7 chronic stroke patients. The end point measure was the magnitude of UDP.

Results— UDP was more prominent with arm stimulation (increased by 22.8%) than with idle time (by 2.9%) or leg stimulation (by 6.4%).

Conclusions— PNS applied to the paretic limb paired with motor training enhances training effects on cortical plasticity in stroke patients.

Key Words: nerve stimulation • neuronal plasticity • stroke • stimulation, transcranial magnetic

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