Direct demonstration of interhemispheric inhibition of the human motor cortex produced by transcranial magnetic stimulation

1999 ◽  
Vol 124 (4) ◽  
pp. 520-524 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. Di Lazzaro ◽  
A. Insola ◽  
P. Mazzone ◽  
P. Tonali ◽  
J. C. Rothwell ◽  
...  
1995 ◽  
Vol 73 (2) ◽  
pp. 218-222 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. C. Ridding ◽  
J. C Rothwell

Transcranial magnetic stimulation over the motor cortex was used to construct a map of the effective sites on the scalp from which short-latency electromyogram responses could be evoked in muscles proximal to either an amputation stump (two subjects) or an ischemically anesthetized forearm (two subjects). At rest, the maps were larger and the responses bigger when stimulating contralateral to the amputated arm or after anesthesia than they were in the intact arm or before anesthesia. However, this difference disappeared when the maps were constructed during a small tonic voluntary contraction of the target muscle. We conclude that reorganisation of the corticospinal projection to a muscle at rest may no longer be present during activity. If so, this calls into question the possible functional benefits of such reorganisation in the control of movement after peripheral damage.Key words: motor cortex, magnetic stimulation, amputation, ischemia.


2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi Yang ◽  
Ines Eisner ◽  
Siqi Chen ◽  
Shaosong Wang ◽  
Fan Zhang ◽  
...  

While neuroplasticity changes measured by transcranial magnetic stimulation have been proved to be highly correlated to motor recovery and have been tested in various forms of interventions, it has not been applied to investigate the neurophysiologic mechanism of acupuncture therapy. The aim of this study is to investigate neuroplasticity changes induced by a single session of acupuncture therapy in healthy adults, regarding the excitability change on bilateral primary motor cortex and interhemispheric inhibition. Ten subjects took a 30-minute acupuncture therapy and the same length relaxing phase in separate days. Transcranial magnetic stimulation measures, including resting motor threshold, amplitudes of motor-evoked potential, and interhemispheric inhibition, were assessed before and 10 minutes after intervention. Acupuncture treatment showed significant changes on potential amplitude from both ipsilateral and contralateral hemispheres to acupuncture compared to baseline. Also, interhemispheric inhibition from the contralateral motor cortex to the opposite showed a significant decline. The results indicated that corticomotoneuronal excitability and interhemispheric competition could be modulated by acupuncture therapy on healthy subjects. The following question about whether these changes will be observed in the same way on stroke patients and whether they correlate with the therapeutic effect on movement need to be answered by following studies. This trial is registered with ISRCTN13074245.


2009 ◽  
Vol 106 (5) ◽  
pp. 1593-1603 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabrielle Todd ◽  
Nigel C. Rogasch ◽  
Stanley C. Flavel ◽  
Michael C. Ridding

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) can induce short-term reorganization of human motor cortex. Here, we investigated the effect of rTMS during relaxation and weak voluntary muscle contraction on motor cortex excitability and hand function. Subjects ( n = 60) participated in one of four studies. Single transcranial magnetic stimuli were delivered over the motor area of the first dorsal interosseus for measurement of motor evoked potential (MEP) size before and after real or sham rTMS delivered at an intensity of 80% of active motor threshold. rTMS involved trains of stimuli applied at 6 Hz for 5 s and repeated every 30 s for 10 min. Resting MEP size was suppressed for 15 min after rTMS during relaxation. However, MEP suppression was abolished when additional brief voluntary contractions were performed before and after rTMS ( study 1). Resting MEP size was suppressed for 30 min after rTMS during weak voluntary contraction. MEP suppression was present even though voluntary contractions were performed before and after rTMS ( study 2). The MEP suppression most likely reflects a decrease in motor cortical excitability. Surprisingly, rTMS during voluntary contraction did not alter maximal finger tapping speed or performance on a grooved pegboard test, object grip and lift task ( study 3), and visuomotor tracking task ( study 4). These studies document the complex relationship between voluntary movement and rTMS-induced plasticity in motor cortex. This work has implications for the optimization of rTMS parameters for improved efficacy and potential therapeutic applications.


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