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Motoneurone afterhyperpolarisation time-course following stroke.

Tanya D Ivanova¹, Svetlana Knorr², Christopher W MacDonell³

¹Department of Physical Therapy, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

Clinical Neurophysiology : Official Journal of the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology

|October 1, 2013

Summary

Following stroke, motoneurone afterhyperpolarisation (AHP) duration prolongs, especially in individuals with reduced motor recovery. This change in AHP time course impacts muscle function and motor unit firing rates.

Keywords:

Afterhyperpolarisation Human Stroke

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Published on: March 17, 2016

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Motor Control
Rehabilitation Science

Background:

Stroke commonly leads to motor deficits, affecting voluntary muscle activation.
Alterations in motoneurone excitability, including the afterhyperpolarisation (AHP), are implicated in post-stroke motor dysfunction.
The time course of the AHP influences motoneurone firing patterns and muscle force generation.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate alterations in the motoneurone afterhyperpolarisation (AHP) time course in the tibialis anterior muscle following chronic stroke.
To compare the efficacy of two distinct methods for estimating AHP duration: the interval death rate (IDR) and transition point methods.

Main Methods:

Intramuscular electrodes recorded motor units from the tibialis anterior in 15 chronic stroke survivors.
Participants modulated their motor unit firing rate from lowest to approximately 10 Hz during isometric contraction.
AHP duration was quantified using both the IDR and transition point estimation techniques.

Main Results:

A significantly longer AHP decay time-constant was observed on the paretic side (41.7 ± 8.5 ms) compared to the non-paretic side (36.2 ± 6.4 ms).
Participants with lower motor recovery (based on CMSA score) exhibited a more prolonged paretic AHP time-constant (45.9 ± 9.1 ms) than those with higher recovery (39.3 ± 10.0 ms).
A strong correlation (r=0.78) was found between the AHP estimates derived from the two techniques.

Conclusions:

The study demonstrates a prolonged AHP time course on the paretic side in individuals with chronic stroke.
This AHP prolongation is more pronounced in individuals with poorer motor recovery, suggesting a link to functional deficits.
Post-stroke changes in motoneurone AHP duration may contribute to reduced motor unit discharge rates observed in voluntary contractions.