Precise Muscle Selection Using Dynamic Polyelectromyography for Treatment of Post-stroke Dystonia: A Case Report.

Dystonia has a wide range of causes, but treatment of dystonia is limited to minimizing the symptoms as there is yet no successful treatment for its cause. One of the optimal treatment methods for dystonia is chemodenervation using botulinum toxin type A (BTX-A), alcohol injection, etc., but its success depends on how precisely the dystonic muscle is selected. Here, we reported a successful experience in a 49-year-old post-stroke female patient who showed paroxysmal repetitive contractions involving the right leg, which may be of dystonic nature. BTX-A and alcohol were injected into the muscles which were identified by dynamic polyelectromyography. After injection, the dystonic muscle spasm, cramping pain, and the range of motion of the affected lower limb improved markedly, and she was able to walk independently indoors. In such a case, dynamic polyelectromyography may be a useful method for selecting the dominant dystonic muscles.

Usefulness of voxel-based lesion mapping for predicting motor recovery in subjects with basal ganglia hemorrhage: A preliminary study with 2 case reports.

It is important to estimate motor recovery in the early phase after stroke. Many studies have demonstrated that both diffusion tensor tractography (DTT) and motor-evoked potentials (MEP) are valuable predictors of motor recovery, but these modalities do not directly reflect the status of the injured gray matter. We report on 2 subjects with basal ganglia hemorrhage who showed similar DTT and MEP findings, but had markedly different clinical outcomes. Specifically, Subject 1 showed no improvement in motor function, whereas Subject 2 exhibited substantial improvement 7 weeks after onset. To determine if differences in gray matter might lend insight into these different outcomes, we analyzed gray matter lesions of the 2 subjects using a novel voxel-based lesion mapping method. The lesion of Subject 1 mainly included the putamen, thalamus, and Heschl's gyri, indicating extension of the hemorrhage in the posterior direction. In contrast, the lesion of Subject 2 mainly included the putamen, insula, and pallidum, indicating that the hemorrhage extended anterior laterally. These differential findings suggest that voxel-based gray matter lesion mapping may help to predict differential motor recovery in subjects with basal ganglia hemorrhage with similar DTT and MEP findings.

Effects of intermittent theta burst stimulation on spasticity after stroke.

Spasticity is a common cause of long-term disability in poststroke hemiplegic patients. We investigated whether intermittent theta burst stimulation (iTBS) could reduce upper-limb spasticity after a stroke. Fifteen hemiplegic stroke patients were recruited for a double-blind sham-controlled cross-over design study. A single session of iTBS or sham stimulation was delivered on the motor hotspot of the affected flexor carpi radialis muscle in a random and counterbalanced order with a 1-week interval. Modified Ashworth scale (MAS), modified Tardieu scale (MTS), H-wave/M-wave amplitude ratio, peak torque (PT), peak torque angle (PTA), work of affected wrist flexor, and rectified integrated electromyographic activity of the flexor carpi radialis muscle were measured before, immediately after, 30 min after, and 1 week after iTBS or sham stimulation. Repeated-measures analysis of variance showed a significant interaction between time and intervention for the MAS, MTS, PT, PTA, and rectified integrated electromyographic activity (P<0.05), indicating that these parameters were significantly improved by iTBS compared with sham stimulation. However, the H-wave/M-wave amplitude ratio and work were not affected. MAS and MTS significantly improved for at least 30 min after iTBS, but the other parameters only improved immediately after iTBS (P<0.05). In conclusion, iTBS on the affected hemisphere may help to reduce poststroke spasticity transiently.

Volumetric analysis of the substantia innominata in patients with Parkinson's disease according to cognitive status.

The cholinergic system arising from the substantia innominata (SI) of the basal forebrain has an important role in the cognitive functions of Parkinson's disease (PD). We performed magnetic resonance imaging based volumetric analysis to evaluate the SI volume in patients with PD-intact cognition (PD-IC), PD-mild cognitive impairment (PD-MCI), and PD dementia (PDD). The mean normalized SI volume was significantly decreased in patients with PD-IC (1.54 ± 0.12, p < 0.001), PD-MCI (1.49 ± 0.12, p < 0.001), and PDD (1.39 ± 0.12, p < 0.001) compared with that of control subjects (1.68 ± 0.11). The normalized SI volume did not differ between patients with PD-IC and PD-MCI; however, the normalized SI volume was significantly decreased in patients with PDD compared with that in those with PD-IC (p < 0.001) or PD-MCI (p = 0.016). The normalized SI volume was significantly correlated with general cognitive status (r = 0.51, p < 0.001) as well as with performance in each cognitive subdomain, with a particularly significant independent association with attention (ß = 0.33, p = 0.003) and object naming (ß = 0.26, p = 0.017). The present study demonstrated that the SI volume in PD differs depending on cognitive status and is significantly correlated with cognitive performance.