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Updated: Aug 8, 2026

Measurement & Analysis of the Temporal Discrimination Threshold Applied to Cervical Dystonia
Published on: January 27, 2018
Bilateral impairment of intracortical inhibition in delayed-onset posthemiplegic dystonia: pathophysiological
Carlo Trompetto1, Alessandro Buccolieri, Marco Bove
1Department of Neurosciences, Ophthalmology and Genetics, University of Genoa, Via de Toni, 5, 16132 Genova, Italy.
Objective:
To study short interval intracortical inhibition (SICI) in a rare patient with segmental dystonia of the left upper limb due to a vascular lesion in the contralateral putamen without corticospinal tract involvement.
Methods:
Paired-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was applied to both hemispheres in a conditioning-test paradigm. Six interstimulus intervals (ISIs) and 4 conditioning stimulation intensities were investigated in two separate sessions.
Results:
Motor evoked potentials upon single-pulse TMS were within the normal range, whereas paired-pulse TMS revealed major changes in cortical excitability, proving that SICI was bilaterally absent.
Conclusions:
The bilateral impairment of SICI cannot be considered the cause of dystonic contractions, but just a predisposing factor.
Significance:
The absence of SICI might be regarded as a condition able to promote maladaptive plastic changes triggered by focal lesions in the putamen.
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