Hemispheric Differences in the Relationship Between Corticomotor Excitability Changes Following a Fine-Motor Task and Motor Learning

2004 ◽  
Vol 91 (4) ◽  
pp. 1570-1578 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael I. Garry ◽  
Gary Kamen ◽  
Michael A. Nordstrom
Keyword(s):  
Motor Learning ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Fine Motor ◽  
Hemispheric Differences ◽  
Corticomotor Excitability ◽  
Hand Muscles ◽  
Right Hand ◽  
Left And Right ◽  
The Right ◽  
Intrinsic Hand Muscles

Motor performance induces a postexercise increase in corticomotor excitability that may be associated with motor learning. We investigated whether there are hemispheric differences in the extent and/or time course of changes in corticomotor excitability following a manipulation task (Purdue pegboard) and their relationship with motor performance. Single- and paired-pulse (3 ms) transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was used to assess task-induced facilitation of the muscle evoked potential (MEP) and intracortical inhibition (ICI) for three intrinsic hand muscles acting on digits 1, 2, and 5. Fifteen right-handed subjects performed three 30-s pegboard trials with left or right hand in separate sessions. TMS was applied to contralateral motor cortex before and after performance. Number of pegs placed was higher with the right hand, and performance improved (motor learning) with both hands over the three trials. MEP facilitation following performance was short-lasting (<15 min), selective for muscles engaged in gripping the pegs, and of similar magnitude in left and right hands. ICI was reduced immediately following performance with the right hand, but not the left. The extent of MEP facilitation was positively correlated with motor learning for the right hand only. We conclude that the pegboard task induces a selective, short-lasting change in excitability of corticospinal neurons controlling intrinsic hand muscles engaged in the task. Only left hemisphere changes were related to motor learning. This asymmetry may reflect different behavioral strategies for performance improvement with left and right upper limb in this task or hemispheric differences in the control of skilled hand movements.

Intracortical Inhibition During Volitional Inhibition of Prepared Action

2006 ◽  
Vol 95 (6) ◽  
pp. 3371-3383 ◽  
Author(s):  
James P. Coxon ◽  
Cathy M. Stinear ◽  
Winston D. Byblow
Keyword(s):  
Primary Motor Cortex ◽  
Motor Evoked Potentials ◽  
Short Interval ◽  
Intracortical Inhibition ◽  
Corticomotor Excitability ◽  
Hand Muscles ◽  
Cortical Level ◽  
A Site ◽  
Intrinsic Hand Muscles ◽  
Inhibitory Networks

Volitional inhibition is the voluntary prevention of a prepared movement. Here we ask whether primary motor cortex (M1) is a site of convergence of cortical activity associated with movement preparation and volitional inhibition. Volitional inhibition was studied by presenting a stop signal before execution of an anticipated response that requires a key lift to intercept a revolving dial. Motor evoked potentials (MEPs) were elicited in intrinsic hand muscles by transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to assess corticomotor excitability and short interval intracortical inhibition (sICI) during task performance. The closer the stop cue was presented to the anticipated response, the harder it was for subjects to inhibit their response. Corticomotor pathway excitability was temporally modulated during volitional inhibition. Using subthreshold TMS, corticomotor excitability was reduced for Stop trials relative to Go trials from 140 ms after the cue. sICI was significantly greater for Stop trials compared with Go trials at a time that preceded the onset of muscle activity associated with the anticipated response. These results provide evidence that volitional inhibition is exerted at a cortical level and that inhibitory networks within M1 contribute to volitional inhibition of prepared action.

scholarly journals Re-emergence of hand-muscle representations in human motor cortex after hand allograft

2009 ◽  
Vol 106 (17) ◽  
pp. 7197-7202 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia D. Vargas ◽  
Antoine Aballéa ◽  
Érika C. Rodrigues ◽  
Karen T. Reilly ◽  
Catherine Mercier ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation ◽  
Motor Cortex ◽  
Upper Limb ◽  
Magnetic Stimulation ◽  
Cortical Representation ◽  
Human Motor Cortex ◽  
Hand Muscles ◽  
Right Hand ◽  
Hand Muscle ◽  
The Right

The human primary motor cortex (M1) undergoes considerable reorganization in response to traumatic upper limb amputation. The representations of the preserved arm muscles expand, invading portions of M1 previously dedicated to the hand, suggesting that former hand neurons are reassigned to the control of remaining proximal upper limb muscles. Hand allograft offers a unique opportunity to study the reversibility of such long-term cortical changes. We used transcranial magnetic stimulation in patient LB, who underwent bilateral hand transplantation 3 years after a traumatic amputation, to longitudinally track both the emergence of intrinsic (from the donor) hand muscles in M1 as well as changes in the representation of stump (upper arm and forearm) muscles. The same muscles were also mapped in patient CD, the first bilateral hand allograft recipient. Newly transplanted intrinsic muscles acquired a cortical representation in LB's M1 at 10 months postgraft for the left hand and at 26 months for the right hand. The appearance of a cortical representation of transplanted hand muscles in M1 coincided with the shrinkage of stump muscle representations for the left but not for the right side. In patient CD, transcranial magnetic stimulation performed at 51 months postgraft revealed a complete set of intrinsic hand-muscle representations for the left but not the right hand. Our findings show that newly transplanted muscles can be recognized and integrated into the patient's motor cortex.

scholarly journals Lateral comparisons using Fishman's skeletal maturation assessment

2014 ◽  
Vol 85 (3) ◽  
pp. 408-412 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abraham N. Safer ◽  
Peter Homel ◽  
David D. Chung
Keyword(s):  
Bone Development ◽  
Surgical Patients ◽  
Skeletal Maturation ◽  
Age And Gender ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
Right Hand ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Left And Right ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Right

ABSTRACT Objective:  To assess lateral differences between ossification events and stages of bone development in the hands and wrists utilizing Fishman's skeletal maturation indicators (SMIs). Materials and Methods:  The skeletal ages of 125 subjects, aged 8 to 20 years, were determined with left and right hand-wrist radiographs using Fishman's SMI assessment. Each subject was also given the Edinburgh Handedness Questionnaire to assess handedness. The skeletal ages of both hand-wrist radiographs were analyzed against each other, handedness, chronologic age, and gender. Results:  There were no significant differences overall in right and left SMI scores (P  =  .70); 79% of all patients showed no difference in right and left SMI scores, regardless of handedness, gender, or age. However, when patients were categorized based on clinical levels of SMI score for the right hand-wrist, there was a significant difference (P  =  .01) between the SMI 1-3 group and the SMI 11 group. Subjects in the SMI 1-3 group were more likely to show a left &gt; right SMI score, while subjects in the SMI 11 group were likely to show a right &gt; left SMI score. Conclusion:  Although no significant overall lateral differences in SMI scores were noted, it may be advisable to obtain a left hand-wrist radiograph and/or additional diagnostic information to estimate completion of growth in young surgical patients.

Case history: Use of the Nintendo Wii to increase fine motor dexterity post cerebral vascular accident

2009 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 41-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karen Drexler, MS, LRT/CTRS
Keyword(s):  
Therapeutic Recreation ◽  
Veterans Affairs ◽  
Fine Motor ◽  
Cerebral Vascular Accident ◽  
Nintendo Wii ◽  
Right Hand ◽  
Motor Dexterity ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Brain

Use of the low cost commercially available gaming console (Nintendo Wii) is a current trend in the rehabilitation environment. Released in 2006 by Nintendo, Veterans Affairs Medical Centers across the country are just setting one, Wii is being used as a physical, social, and cognitive tool. This case report seeks to provide evidence of its use as a rehabilitation tool for individuals who have experienced a recent stroke. By using whole body movements, the Wii sports games help in both gross motor and fine motor skills as well as in hand–eye coordination. This case study involves an older adult who is recovering from a cerebral vascular accident (CVA) and how using the Wii bowling game assisted to increase his fine motor strength and dexterity. CVA or stroke also called a “brain attack” can affect various parts of the brain. There are various signs and symptoms of CVA and these vary in each individual. Some of the signs that an individual having CVA shows are: sudden numbness or weakness of the face, arm or leg (especially on one side of the body), sudden confusion, trouble speaking, or understanding speech, sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes, sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination, sudden severe headache with no known cause. This case study involved an older adult who experienced a CVA involving hemorrhage in the right cerebellum as revealed in a CT scan. This CVA affected the right hand of this individual. Hemorrhagic stroke occurs when a blood vessel in the brain ruptures. This lets blood to spill into nearby brain tissue, which damages the cells. Some brain cells die because their normal blood supply is cut off. Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist and Author of this case article utilized the Salisbury Veterans Affairs Medical Center Recreational Therapy initial intake assessment and discovered per patient’s report that he had decreased strength and fine motor dexterity in the fingers of his right hand status post CVA. This patient reported that after his stroke, he was not able to hold a utensil in his right hand. This case study speaks the use of the Nintendo Wii in assisting patient to regain use of the fingers of the hand that was affected by the CVA. This article can provide information for other Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialists as to the use of the Nintendo Wii™ as a treatment modality. This device can demonstrate outcomes of improving fine motor dexterity for those who are recovering from a CVA.

scholarly journals Drawing with the Non-dominant Hand: Implications for the Study of Construction

1998 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 306-309 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sherma Zacharias ◽  
Andrew Kirk
Keyword(s):  
Neurological Disease ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Normal Subjects ◽  
Elderly Subjects ◽  
Dominant Hand ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
Right Hand ◽  
Left And Right ◽  
The Right ◽  
Right And Left Hand

ABSTRACT:Background:Constructional impairment following left vs. right hemisphere damage has been extensively studied using drawing tasks. A confounding factor in these studies is that right-handed patients with left hemisphere damage (LHD) are often forced by weakness to use their non-dominant (left) hand or hemiparetic dominant hand. Qualitative differences in the drawing characteristics of left and right hand drawings by normal subjects have not previously been characterized. The present study was undertaken to determine the qualitative differences between left and right hand drawings of normal subjects.Methods:Thirty right-handed, elderly subjects without a history of neurological disease were asked to draw, from memory, seven objects using the right and left hand. Half of the subjects were randomly assigned to draw with the left hand first, and half the right hand first. Right and left hand drawings were compared using a standardized scoring system utilized in several previous studies of drawing in focal and diffuse neurological disease. Each drawing was scored on eighteen criteria. Right and left hand drawing scores were then compared using the t-test for paired samples or the Wilcoxon matched-pairs testResults:Drawings made using the left hand were found to be significantly simpler, more tremulous and of poorer overall quality than drawings made by the same subjects using the right hand.Conclusions:The deficits found in left versus right hand drawings of normals are similar to those found in patients with LHD, suggesting that much of the drawing impairment seen following LHD is due to an elementary motor disturbance related to use of the non-dominant hand.

scholarly journals The rodent hippocampus as a bilateral structure: A review of hemispheric lateralization

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jake T. Jordan
Keyword(s):  
Brain Region ◽  
Spatial Information ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Neural Substrates ◽  
Hemispheric Lateralization ◽  
Hemispheric Differences ◽  
Functional Lateralization ◽  
Left And Right ◽  
The Right ◽  
Behavior And Cognition

AbstractThe left and right rodent hippocampi exhibit striking lateralization in some of the very neural substrates considered to be critical for hippocampal cognitive function. Despite this, there is an overwhelming lack of consideration for hemispheric differences in studies of the rodent hippocampus. Asymmetries identified so far suggest that a bilateral model of the hippocampus will be essential for an understanding of this brain region, and perhaps of the brain more widely. Although hypotheses have been proposed to explain how the left and right hippocampi contribute to behavior and cognition, these hypotheses have either been refuted by more recent studies or have been limited in the scope of data they explain. Here, I will first review data on human and rodent hippocampal lateralization. The implications of these data suggest that considering the hippocampus as a bilateral structure with functional lateralization will be critical moving forward in understanding the function and mechanisms of this brain region. In exploring these implications, I will then propose a hypothesis of the hippocampus as a bilateral structure. This discrete-continuous (DC) hypothesis proposes that the left and right hippocampi contribute to spatial memory and navigation in a complementary manner. Specifically, the left hemisphere stores spatial information as discrete, salient locations and that the right hemisphere represents space continuously, contributing to route computation and flexible spatial navigation. Consideration of hippocampal lateralization in designing future studies may provide insight into the function of the hippocampus and resolve debates concerning its function.

scholarly journals Are left- and right-eye pupil sizes always equal?

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gonca Gokce Menekse Dalveren ◽  
Nergiz Ercil Cagiltay
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Movement Analysis ◽  
Difficulty Level ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
Surgical Residents ◽  
Right Hand ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Left And Right ◽  
The Right

Eye movements provide very critical information about the cognitive load and behaviors of human beings. Earlier studies report that under normal conditions, the left- and right-eye pupil sizes are equal. For this reason, most studies undertaking eye-movement analysis are conducted by only considering the pupil size of a single eye or taking the average size of both eye pupils. This study attempts to offer a better understanding concerning whether there are any differences between the left- and right-eye pupil sizes of the right-handed surgical residents while performing surgical tasks in a computer-based simulation environment under different conditions (left hand, right hand and both hands). According to the results, in many cases, the right-eye pupil sizes of the participants were larger than their left-eye pupil sizes while performing the tasks under right-hand and both-hands conditions. However, no significant difference was found in relation to the tasks performed under left-hand condition in all scenarios. These results are very critical to shed further light on the cognitive load of the surgical residents by analyzing their left-eye and right-eye pupil sizes. Further research is required to investigate the effect of the difficulty level of each scenario, its appropriateness with the skill level of the participants, and handedness on the differences between the left- and right-eye pupil sizes.

Explaining Individual Differences in Fine Motor Performance and Learning in Older Adults: The Contribution of Muscle Strength and Cardiovascular Fitness

2019 ◽  
Vol 27 (5) ◽  
pp. 725-738 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lena Hübner ◽  
Solveig Vieluf ◽  
Ben Godde ◽  
Claudia Voelcker-Rehage
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Muscle Strength ◽  
Motor Learning ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Cardiovascular Fitness ◽  
Fine Motor ◽  
Force Modulation ◽  
Motor Test ◽  
Fine Motor Performance ◽  
Rate Of Improvement

It remains controversial whether aging influences motor learning and whether physiological factors, such as local strength or fitness, are associated with fine motor performance and learning in older adults (OA). OA (n = 51) and young adults (YA,n = 31) performed a short-term motor learning session using a precision grip force modulation task. The rate of improvement of OA compared with YA was steeper with respect to performance variability and temporal precision. Both age groups showed positive transfer during an unpracticed variant of the force modulation task. Local muscle strength (pinch and grip strength) and high cardiovascular fitness positively predicted fine motor performance, whereas initial performance, muscle strength, and motor fitness (heterogeneous motor test battery) negatively predicted rate of improvement. Analyses indicated potentials, but also limits of plasticity for OA.

Semantic Networks in the Divided Cerebral Hemispheres

1995 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 212-218 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alice Cronin-Golomb
Keyword(s):  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Semantic Networks ◽  
Size Composition ◽  
Strongly Correlated ◽  
Hemispheric Differences ◽  
Semantic Organization ◽  
Left And Right ◽  
The Right ◽  
Or Organization ◽  
Visual Hemifields

Hemispheric differences in the recognition and manipulation of meaning may be based on distinctions in size, composition, or organization of the right and left semantic networks The present study describes these features of pictorially based semantic networks in 3 subjects with complete forebrain commissurotomy Stimuli were presented for prolonged viewing to the left and right visual hemifields For each trial, the subjects chose from a 20-choice array all pictures that were associated with a target, then indicated the member of each pair of chosen associates that was more closely related to the target The hemispheres' networks were found to be of similar size and composition, but were organized differently The right hemisphere more often produced linear rankings of semantic associates to a target than did the left, and rankings by the two hemispheres were not strongly correlated Hemispheric differences in semantic organization mirror differences in perceptual organization, with the right hemisphere specialized for conventional meaning and the left hemisphere specialized for detecting and processing deviations from standard meaning

Influence of a psychological stressor on motor performance and motor learning of a fine motor task: a randomised controlled experiment

Physiotherapy ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 101 ◽  
pp. e954
Author(s):  
D. Marquardt ◽  
M. Jongbloed-Pereboom ◽  
B. Staal ◽  
H.-J. Appell ◽  
A. Overvelde ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Motor Learning ◽  
Motor Performance ◽  
Motor Task ◽  
Controlled Experiment ◽  
Fine Motor ◽  
Randomised Controlled ◽  
Psychological Stressor
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