Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry logoLink to Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry
. 1981 Aug;44(8):699–707. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.44.8.699

Cutaneous nerve stimulation and motoneuronal excitability: I, soleus and tibialis anterior excitability after ipsilateral and contralateral sural nerve stimulation.

P J Delwaide, P Crenna, M H Fleron
PMCID: PMC491090  PMID: 7299408

Abstract

Modification of soleus and anterior tibial anterior horn cell excitability following ipsilateral and contralateral stimulations of the sural nerve was studied by either the H reflex (for the soleus and anterior tibial muscles) or the F response (for the anterior tibial muscles). Several intensities of stimulation were employed. In every instance the recovery curves showed two distinct peaks of facilitation, which appeared with the same delay in muscles with antagonist functions. Also, reciprocal facilitation and inhibition phenomena which occurred after a 25 ms delay and which lasted more than 1000 ms were observed. The intervention of suprasegmentary neuronal mechanisms is proposed to explain the facilitation peaks, while the longer lasting phenomena are probably dependent on spinal processes.

Full text

PDF
699

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. BATHIEN N., HUGON M. ETUDE, CHEZ L'HOMME, DE LA D'EPRESSION D'UN R'EFLEXE MONOSYNAPTIQUE PAR STIMULATION D'UN NERF CUTAN'E. J Physiol (Paris) 1964 May-Jun;56:285–286. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Bathien N., Bourdarias H. Lower limb cutaneous reflexes in hemiplegia. Brain. 1972;95(3):447–456. doi: 10.1093/brain/95.2.447. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Bawa P., Tatton W. G. Motor unit responses in muscles stretched by imposed displacements of the monkey wrist. Exp Brain Res. 1979;37(3):417–437. doi: 10.1007/BF00236815. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Cambier J., Dehen H., Bathien N. Upper limb cutaneous polysynaptic reflexes. J Neurol Sci. 1974 May;22(1):39–49. doi: 10.1016/0022-510x(74)90052-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Castaigne P., Held J. P., Cathala H. P., Pierrot-Deseilligny E., Bussel B., Morin C. Modifications de l'excitabilité médullaire induites par une stimulation cutanée chez différentes catégories d'hémiplégiques. Rev Neurol (Paris) 1972 Jun;126(6):393–400. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Chan C. W., Jones G. M., Kearney R. E., Watt D. G. The 'late' electromyographic response to limb displacement in man. I. Evidence for supraspinal contribution. Electroencephalogr Clin Neurophysiol. 1979 Feb;46(2):173–181. doi: 10.1016/0013-4694(79)90066-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Fisher M. A., Shahani B. T., Young R. R. Assessing segmental excitability after acute rostral lesions. I. The F response. Neurology. 1978 Dec;28(12):1265–1271. doi: 10.1212/wnl.28.12.1265. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Gassel M. M., Ott K. H. Local sign and late effects on motoneuron excitability of cutaneous stimulation in man. Brain. 1970;93(1):95–106. doi: 10.1093/brain/93.1.95. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Gassel M. M. The role of skin areas adjacent to extensor muscles in motor neurone excitability: evidence bearing on the physiology of Babinski's response. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1970 Feb;33(1):121–126. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.33.1.121. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Gottlieb G. L., Agarwal G. C. Response to sudden torques about ankle in man: myotatic reflex. J Neurophysiol. 1979 Jan;42(1 Pt 1):91–106. doi: 10.1152/jn.1979.42.1.91. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Marsden C. D., Merton P. A., Morton H. B. Servo action in human voluntary movement. Nature. 1972 Jul 21;238(5360):140–143. doi: 10.1038/238140a0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Marsden C. D., Merton P. A., Morton H. B. Stretch reflex and servo action in a variety of human muscles. J Physiol. 1976 Jul;259(2):531–560. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1976.sp011481. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. O'Sullivan D. J., Swallow M. The fibre size and content of the radial and sural nerves. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1968 Oct;31(5):464–470. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.31.5.464. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Piesiur-Strehlow B., Meinck H. M. Response patterns of human lumbo-sacral motoneurone pools to distant somatosensory stimuli. Electroencephalogr Clin Neurophysiol. 1980 Jun;48(6):673–682. doi: 10.1016/0013-4694(80)90424-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Robinson K. L., McIlwain J. S., Hayes K. C. Effects of H-reflex conditioning upon the contralateral alpha motoneuron pool. Electroencephalogr Clin Neurophysiol. 1979 Jan;46(1):65–71. doi: 10.1016/0013-4694(79)90050-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Rosenberg M. E. Synaptic connexions of alpha extensor motoneurones with ipsilateral and contralateral cutaneous nerves. J Physiol. 1970 Mar;207(1):231–255. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1970.sp009058. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Rudomin P., Dutton H. Effects of conditioning afferent volleys on variability of monosynaptic responses of extensor motoneurons. J Neurophysiol. 1969 Mar;32(2):140–157. doi: 10.1152/jn.1969.32.2.140. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Schiller H. H., Stalberg E. F responses studied with single fibre EMG in normal subjects and spastic patients. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1978 Jan;41(1):45–53. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.41.1.45. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Shahani B. T., Young R. R. Human flexor reflexes. J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 1971 Oct;34(5):616–627. doi: 10.1136/jnnp.34.5.616. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Shimamura M., Mori S., Yamauchi T. Effects of spino-bulbo-spinal reflex volleys on extensor motoneurons of hindlimb in cats. J Neurophysiol. 1967 Mar;30(2):319–332. doi: 10.1152/jn.1967.30.2.319. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES