Biomedical subjects

Edelle Carmen Field-Fote

Publications and source records attributed to Edelle Carmen Field-Fote.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2004

Electrical stimulation modifies spinal and cortical neural circuitry.

Sensory input shapes and refines motor performance. It also modulates, on both a short- and long-term basis, the neural circuitry underlying motor performance. Evidence suggests that electrical stimulation can be used to mimic these modulatory effects on neural circuitry, perhaps providing a tool to influence motor function in both able-bodied individuals and those with motor dysfunction caused by neurological injury.

Conditioning, Operant↗

PubMed2002

Improved intralimb coordination in people with incomplete spinal cord injury following training with body weight support and electrical stimulation.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Limb coordination is an element of motor control that is frequently disrupted following spinal cord injury (SCI). The authors assessed intralimb coordination in subjects with SCI following a 12-week program combining body weight support, electrical stimulation, and treadmill training. SUBJECTS: Fourteen subjects with long-standing (mean time post-SCI=70 months, range=12-171 months), incomplete SCI participated. Three subjects without SCI provided data for comparison. METHODS: A vector-based technique was used to assign values to the frame-by-frame changes in hip/knee angle, and vector analysis techniques were used to assess how closely the hip/knee angles of each step cycle resembled those of every other step cycle. Overground and treadmill walking speeds also were measured. RESULTS: Following training, 9 of the 14 subjects with SCI demonstrated greater intercycle agreement. Mean overground and treadmill walking speeds improved (84% and 158%, respectively). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: The intervention used in this study is based on our current understanding of the role of afferent input in the production of walking. Although the study sample was small and there was no control group, results suggest that training may improve intralimb coordination in people with SCI.

Adult↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Quantification of functional behavior in humans and animals: time for a paradigm shift.

Measuring the effectiveness of interventions aimed at restoring motor function will be critical in deciding which animal trials should be translated to human studies. While various methods of quantifying motor behavior exist, many of these rely on observation and interpretation. Kinematic analysis is an objective means of quantifying temporal relationships and coordination within and between limbs during motor performance. These relationships offer valuable information on the condition and organization of the underlying neural circuitry. Kinematic data can drive a number of powerful analyses. These analyses can help detect nuances in motor performance and answer questions about the effectiveness of interventions designed to restore motor function.

Animals↗