Illusion of arm movement evoked by tendon vibration in patients with spinal cord injury

Fusco, Gabriele; Tidoni, Emmanuele; Barone, Nicola; Pilati, Claudio; Aglioti, Salvatore Maria

Abstract

Background: Studies in healthy people show that stimulation of muscle spindles through frequency-specific tendon vibration (TV) induces the illusory perception of movement. Following spinal cord injury (SCI), motor and sensory connections between the brain and parts of the body below-the-lesion level are partially or totally impaired. Objective: The present investigation is a descriptive study aimed to investigate whether people living with SCI may experience movement illusions comparable to a control group. Methods: Healthy and people with SCI were asked to report on three illusion-related features (Vividness, Duration, Illusory Extension) after receiving 70 Hz TV on the biceps brachii tendon of both arms. Two different forces of stimulation were applied: 2.4 N and 4.2 N. Results: Both patients and controls were susceptible to the kinesthetic illusion. However patients presented lower sensitivity to TV than healthy subjects. Participants rated stronger illusions of movement after 4.2 N than 2.4 N stimulation in all the three illusion-related features. Further, patients reported atypical illusory experiences of movement (e.g. as if the arm wanted to extend, or a sensation of pushing against something) that may reflect different reorganization processes following spinal cord injury. Conclusion: The study provides a preliminary evidence of the possible use of the proprioceptive stimulation in the upper limbs of people living with SCI. Results are discussed in the light of recent advancements of brain-computer applications based on motor imagery for the control of neuroprosthetic and robotic devices in patients with severe sensorimotor deficits.

Citation

Fusco, G., Tidoni, E., Barone, N., Pilati, C., & Aglioti, S. M. (2016). Illusion of arm movement evoked by tendon vibration in patients with spinal cord injury. Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience, 34(5), 815-826. https://doi.org/10.3233/rnn-160660

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Sep 1, 2016
• Online Publication Date: Sep 21, 2016
• Publication Date: Sep 21, 2016
• Deposit Date: Mar 24, 2019
• Journal: Restorative Neurology and Neuroscience
• Print ISSN: 1878-3627
• Electronic ISSN: 1878-3627
• Publisher: IOS Press
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 34
• Issue: 5
• Pages: 815-826
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.3233/rnn-160660
• Keywords: Spinal cord injury; Tendon vibration; Illusion of movement; Spinal cord rehabilitation; Proprioception
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/1420794
• Publisher URL: https://content.iospress.com/articles/restorative-neurology-and-neuroscience/rnn160660