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PubMed1989

The gross motor function measure: a means to evaluate the effects of physical therapy.

This paper reports the results of a study to validate a measure of gross motor function in detecting change in the motor function of disabled children. Physiotherapists used this instrument to assess 111 patients with cerebral palsy, 25 with head injury and 34 non-disabled preschool children on two occasions, the second after an interval of four to six months. Parents and therapists independently rated the children's function within two weeks of each assessment, and a sample of paired assessments was videotaped for 'blind' evaluation by therapists. Correlations between scores for change on this measure and the judgments of change by parents, therapists and 'blind' evaluators supported the hypothesis that the instrument would be responsive to both negative and positive changes.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1991

Optimal transcranial magnetic stimulation sites for the assessment of motor function.

The optimal placement sites for eliciting motor evoked potentials from the abductor digiti minimi and abductor hallucis muscles by means of transcranial magnetic stimulation were determined using a commercially available circular coli. Fifty volunteers were used for the study. The ability to elicit responses was found to be strongly dependent upon the scalp placement of the stimulator coil. The effects of altering the direction of current flow in the coil were tested on two different sets of volunteers: clockwise in one and counterclockwise in the other. It influenced only the locations of the sites which were optimal for eliciting responses from the abductor hallucis muscles and not those which were optimal for eliciting responses from the abductor digiti minimi muscles. Response latencies were found to be significantly dependent only upon volunteers' heights and not on their sex, age, or weight or the stimulus intensities used to elicit responses. No previous studies have defined the optimal scalp placements for eliciting responses from the lower extremities. This information may have clinical importance for making reliable assessments of patients with significantly impaired motor function.

Action Potentials↗

PubMed1986

Computer-aided measuring of motor functions using pursuit tracking.

The necessity of evaluating motor functions objectively and quantitatively is discussed. Tracking tasks and their appropriateness in assessing motor performance is reviewed. Motor performance can be effectively assessed by means of tracking tasks. A simple tracking device is presented which allows the measurement of motor performance in different conditions. It is pointed out that computers are well suited for driving the stimulus in tracking tasks as well as recording the performance in experiments based on tracking tasks. Differences between open and closed loop conditions, compensatory tracking, pursuit tracking, preview tracking and cognitive tracking are discussed. A flexible computer-controlled device is presented with which diverse experiments based on tracking tasks can be performed and their results recorded. A complete description of the user-oriented, interactive programs with which the experiments can be controlled and the relevant performance data can be recorded is given. An example of their application on measuring the effects of levodopa therapy on the motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease is presented.

Computers↗

PubMed1976

[Electromyographic studies on gastric and intestinal motor function following pylorus preserving gastrectomy with jejunal interposition in dogs (author's transl)].

The gastric and intestinal motor function following pylorus preserving gastrectomy with jejunal interposition were studied electromyographically in dogs. The action potentials were recorded from the interposed jejunal segment, the preserving pylorus and the duodenum before and after insertion of warm water. Studies were made on the frequency, the propagation velocity of the spike-bursts in the portions mentioned above, and the incidence of the spike-bursts which propagated from the distal porition of the interposed jejunal segment to the preserving pylorus, and from the preserving pylorus to the proximal portion of the duodenum. The results obtained are as follows: 1) The frequency of the spike-bursts found in the interposed jejunal segment, the preserving pylorus, and the duodenum showed a remarkable increase after insertion of warm water. 2) The propagation velocity of the spike-bursts in the interposed jejunal segment, the preserving pylorus, and the duodenum were accelerated after insertion of warm water. 3) There were observed a moderate increase in the incidence of the spike-bursts which propagated from the distal portion of the interposed jejunal segment to the preserving pylorus, and from the preserving pylorus to the proximal portion of the duodenum after insertion of warm water. These findings suggested that the motor function of the interposed jejunal segment, that of the preserving pylorus, and that of the duodenum after pylorus preserving gastrectomy with jejunal interposition might be kept not yet injured enough to transport the contents from the interposed jejunal segment into the duodenum.

Action Potentials↗

PubMed1989

Blocking weight-induced spinal cord injury in rats: effects of TRH or naloxone on motor function recovery and spinal cord blood flow.

The ability of thyrotropin releasing hormone (TRH) or naloxone to reduce the motor function deficit and to improve the spinal cord blood flow (SCBF) was investigated in a rat spinal cord compression injury model. Spinal cord injury was induced by compression for 5 min with a load of 35 g on a 2.2 x 5.0 mm sized compression plate causing a transient paraparesis. One group of animals was given TRH, one group naloxone and one group saline alone. Each drug was administered intravenously as a bolus dose of 2 mg/kg 60 min after injury followed by a continuous infusion of 2 mg/kg/h for 4 h. The motor performance was assessed daily on the inclined plane until Day 4, when SCBF was measured with the 14C-iodoantipyrine autoradiographic method. It was found that neither TRH nor naloxone had promoted motor function recovery or affected SCBF 4 days after spinal cord injury.

Animals↗

PubMed1977

Objective clinical assessment of motor function after experimental spinal cord injury in the rat.

A new method was developed for the clinical assessment of motor function in rats after experimental spinal cord injury. The method consists of placing the animal on an inclined plane which can be adjusted to provide a slope of varying grade, and then assessing the maximum angle of the plane at which the animal can maintain its position without falling. The method was used to quantitate motor function in normal rats and in rats subjected to myelectomy, and consistently showed major differences between the two groups. The method has many positive features: the plane is easy to construct and of low cost; and the test is rapid, non-invasive, repeatable, and consistent.

Animals↗

PubMed1989

[Methods of studying motor function of the small intestine at a surgical clinic].

On the basis of 200 many-hours investigations of motor function of the duodenum and jejunum performed in experiments and clinic with the help of polydigestograph "Express-MT" five degrees of its activity were established: negative, relative rest, weak, medial and strong. High exactness of the registration of intestinal motility at the early period after operations on the abdominal organs was proved. It was found that no complete extinction of the motor function of the small intestine was observed even under conditions of diffuse peritonitis.

Catheterization↗

PubMedDate not supplied

A comparison of the anticonvulsant effects of 1,4- and 1,5-benzodiazepines in the amygdala-kindled rat and their effects on motor function.

Studies suggest that the 1,5-benzodiazepine clobazam possesses a favorable anticonvulsant profile due to its minimal neurotoxicity. The anticonvulsant and motor impairment effects of clobazam and 2 1,4-benzodiazepine, diazepam and clonazepam, were compared by dose-response analysis in amygdala-kindled rats and on 3 tests of motor function: gross motor impairment, a vertical screen test, and muscle tone. All drugs produced a significant, dose-dependent decrease in the duration of both behavioral and electrographic kindled seizure measures. Forelimb clonus suppression was the most sensitive measure of anticonvulsant drug effect. The order of potency for all effects was clonazepam greater than diazepam greater than clobazam. ED50s for the benzodiazepines' effects on motor impairment were compared to their ability to protect rats from forelimb clonus. Different spectrums of action for the various benzodiazepines were found depending on the comparison measure. Clonazepam had the most favorable ratio of potency for anticonvulsant vs. motor impairment activity when ataxia rating was the comparison measure. Diazepam had the most advantageous profile when the more sensitive screen test was used for comparison. Clobazam was not found to have a superior spectrum of action when compared across these measures. The results emphasize the importance of dose-response analyses and the consideration of behavioral measures used to assess beneficial and adverse effects of anticonvulsants.

Amygdala↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Caudal analgesia for pediatric day case surgery: assessment of motor function prior to discharge.

The benefits of caudal analgesia are well recognized in the prevention of postoperative pain following pediatric surgery. The possibility of motor weakness may deter anesthetists from using this technique. This study investigates motor function prior to discharge in boys who, as day case patients, received caudal analgesia for pain relief following circumcision. Motor function was assessed using a simple and clinically relevant scale. Three different dosage regimens of bupivacaine were compared. No important motor weakness was demonstrated, and there was no difference with respect to motor block in the three groups. Caudal analgesia may be recommended as a suitable technique for day case patients.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1988

Quantification of motor function in toxicology.

Disturbances of movement and other motor functions can result from exposure to toxicants and drugs. Sometimes, as with acute exposure to ethanol or solvents, these effects disappear when exposure ends. Other times, as with manganese, haloperidol, or chronic ethanol, motor disturbances are irreversible and may even lie undetected until after exposure has ended. Motor disturbances can take on many guises, including tremor, difficulty in positioning, fatigue, or rigidity. Techniques for measuring these different endpoints in primates will be addressed. One preparation that enables the simultaneous monitoring of positioning, tremor, and operant behavior in nonhuman primates is described, and tactics for obtaining spectral estimates of tremor from a positioning task are outlined. The spectra obtained from this preparation are reliable and valid: they are stable over a period of a year, they correspond to spectra obtained from accelerometers, and are altered by acute administration of ethanol or oxotremorine. These two drugs had opposite effects on tremor but affected bar positioning in a similar manner.

Animals↗

PubMed1987

Rate of aging and dietary restriction: sensory and motor function in the Fischer 344 rat.

Sensory and motor task performance was assessed at 3 to 4 month intervals in chronically underfed and ad libitum-fed control rats from maturity into senescence. Diet-restricted rats weighed less than controls and lived significantly longer. Diminished body mass improved the underfed rats' abilities to hang suspended from a wire, to maintain balance on a narrow beam, and to descend from a wire mesh pole in a coordinated fashion. Underfed rats, however, lost these abilities at the same rate as did control rats. Undernutrition did not affect the startle response to acoustic stimulation, nor did it influence auditory or visual lead stimulus inhibition of the startle response. Both groups of animals showed progressive, age-related losses of sensory-motor function which proceeded at the same rate in each group. Life-prolonging undernutrition did not appear to retard aging of these simple, reflexive behaviors.

Aging↗

PubMed1991

Cesarean section before the onset of labor and subsequent motor function in infants with meningomyelocele diagnosed antenatally.

Background. Meningomyelocele can now be detected before birth. Few data are available on its natural history, however, and optimal management at the time of delivery is controversial, although it has been suggested that labor and vaginal delivery may cause pressure on exposed nerve roots, resulting in additional loss of neural function. Methods. To assess the effect of labor and the type of delivery on the level of motor function in fetuses with uncomplicated meningomyelocele, we identified 200 cases of this disorder, accounting for 95 percent of the cases that occurred in the state of Washington during our 10-year study period. We compared the outcomes of 47 infants delivered by cesarean section before labor began, 35 delivered by cesarean section after a period of labor, and 78 who were delivered vaginally (another 40 were ineligible for the study). In cases of meningomyelocele detected prenatally, cesarean section was performed before the onset of labor if isolated meningomyelocele without severe hydrocephalus was present. The infants delivered in this manner were compared with those who were delivered either vaginally or by cesarean section after labor began. Results. At two years of age, the infants who had been exposed to labor were 2.2 times more likely to have severe paralysis than those delivered by cesarean section without labor (95 percent confidence interval, 1.7 to 2.8). Infants delivered by cesarean section before the beginning of labor had a mean (+/- SD) level of paralysis 3.3 +/- 3.0 segments below the anatomical level of the spinal lesion at two years of age, as compared with 1.1 +/- 2.3 for infants delivered vaginally and 0.9 +/- 4.1 for infants delivered by cesarean section after the beginning of labor (P less than 0.001 for both comparisons). Exposure to labor did not affect the frequency of neonatal complications or later intellectual performance. Conclusions. For the fetus with uncomplicated meningomyelocele, delivery by cesarean section before the onset of labor may result in better subsequent motor function than vaginal delivery or delivery by cesarean section after a period of labor.

Cesarean Section↗

PubMed1989

Increased caudate dopamine turnover may contribute to the recovery of motor function in marmosets treated with the dopaminergic neurotoxin MPTP.

Administration of 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) to common marmosets initially impaired motor function, but a partial recovery occurred over the following weeks. At both 10 days and 4-6 weeks following MPTP treatment, [3H]dopamine ([3H]DA) uptake into synaptosomal preparations of putamen was markedly decreased. At 10 days and 4-6 weeks following MPTP treatment DA, homovanillic acid (HVA) and 3,4-dihydroxyphenylacetic acid (DOPAC) levels in the caudate nucleus and nucleus accumbens were substantially reduced. However, the levels of HVA and DOPAC in caudate nucleus were higher at 4-6 weeks than at 10 days. The ratio of (DOPAC + HVA)/DA in caudate nucleus was elevated at 10 days following MPTP treatment and even more so at 4-6 weeks. No change in Bmax or Kd values for [3H]spiperone binding to caudate preparations were observed. The recovery of motor function in marmosets observed following MPTP treatment may result partially from a compensatory increase in caudate DA turnover by remaining neurones.

1-Methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine↗

PubMed1989

Pre-pyloric mechanisms regulating gastric motor function in the conscious dog.

Reflex mechanisms regulating gastric motor function were studied in four conscious dogs, whose stomachs had been surgically divided into separate corporal and antral pouches. Interactions between the corpus and antrum were investigated in fasted animals by balloon distension of each region. During the quiescent phase (phase I) of the migrating motor complex (MMC), distending the corpus with volumes greater than 80 ml resulted in contractions of the corpus, which persisted for as long as the distending stimulus was applied. This corporal distension also initiated antral contractions which were greater if the antrum was moderately distended and also greater with a larger corporal distending volume up to 300 ml. Graded 5 ml inflation of the antrum during the quiescent phase of the MMC stimulated antral contractions. This antral response to antral distension was augmented when the corpus was inflated but was only statistically significant with antral volumes below 25 ml. Distension of the antrum with volumes greater than 12.5 ml caused inhibition of corporal contractions during both the active phase of a migrating complex or when stimulated by corporal inflation. The degree of inhibition was proportional to the distending stimulus and was present for the duration of the applied distension. For antral volumes of 50 ml the inhibition persisted for a variable time after the stimulus was withdrawn. The inhibition of corporal activity by antral distension was still effective after blocking acid secretion with cimetidine (100 mg), which would eliminate spillage of acid into the jejunum as a cause of the inhibition.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗

PubMed1990

Effects of intrathecal injection of the adenosine receptor agonists R-phenylisopropyl-adenosine and N-ethylcarboxamide-adenosine on nociception and motor function in the rat.

R-phenylisopropyl-adenosine, which has an affinity for the adenosine A1 receptor higher than that for the A2 receptor, and N-ethylcarboxamide-adenosine, which has near equal affinity for the A1 and A2 receptors, were injected intrathecally into rats to evaluate differences in antinociceptive effect and motor impairment. Using the tail-immersion test, both compounds had antinociceptive effects. Motor function was evaluated during spontaneous movement in a free space. N-ethylcarboxamide-adenosine rapidly impaired motor function even after low intrathecal doses. R-phenylisopropyl-adenosine also induced motor impairment, but only after high intrathecal doses, and onset was much slower. These results suggest that the receptor selectivity of R-phenylisopropyl-adenosine is diminished at higher doses and that the motor impairment is an A2-receptor-mediated effect. A selective A1 receptor agonist, e.g., R-phenylisopropyl-adenosine, which produces a good antinociceptive effect without motor impairment, is more promising as a drug of possible use for the future treatment of clinical pain.

Adenosine↗

PubMed1987

Motor function in the excluded esophagus and its implications in the management of patients with unresectable carcinoma of the esophagus.

Palliative exclusion of the esophagus by use of transposed stomach was performed in a 63-year-old woman with unresectable cervical esophageal cancer. Twelve weeks after this operation, motor function of the excluded esophagus was assessed. All voluntary swallows produced a motor response in the esophageal body. Eighty-five per cent of the contractions were peristaltic and generated mean pressures of 28 mmHg. Fifteen per cent of the deglutitions were followed by nonpropulsive waves with mean pressures of 24 mmHg. Spontaneous tertiary activity occurred at a rate of 2.5 contractions per minute with an amplitude of 16 mmHg. Motor function in the excluded esophagus persists after bypass of the organ. This suggests that the excluded esophagus should be decompressed after surgery to prevent "blowout" of its closed ends.

Carcinoma, Squamous Cell↗

PubMed1987

Gallbladder motor function in chagasic patients with megacolon and/or megaesophagus.

Gallbladder motor function was evaluated in 21 Chagasic patients with megacolon and/or megaesophagus and the results were compared with those obtained in 19 control subjects. Gallbladder contraction was evaluated by the radiologic method after the application of two different stimuli: an exogenous one consisting of intravenous injection of cholecystokinin octapeptide at the dose of 30 ng/kg over a period of 1 min, radiologic evaluation was performed before and 5, 10, 15 and 20 min after the stimulus; an endogenous one produced by standardised intraduodenal instillation of a lipid emulsion, radiologic evaluation was performed before and 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 min after the beginning of intraduodenal infusion. The gallbladder of the Chagasic patients was found to be hypersensitive to both stimuli, since it contracted in a statistically more intense manner, with contraction starting earlier and lasting longer than among the controls. This difference in contracting behavior suggests impairment of the inhibitory intrinsic innervation of the gallbladder.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1979

[Restoration of motor functions in disruption of the spinal cord or cauda equina].

Eight patients with a rupture of the spinal cord at the level of middle thoracic vertebrae or cauda equina at the lumbar level showed partial recovery of motor functions. The development of the activity was revealed by electromyography in body muscles and M. gluteus media in all the patients who attempted voluntary movements. Appearance and development of the activity was also observed in the muscles of the femur and crus. The level of rehabilitation shown by the patients was high enough. They could walk in fixation apparatuses, returned to their occupational activities and could practice self-service. The motor functions recovered more rapidly at the low levels of injury; however, the same and possibly complete rehabilitation was attained in 2 patients with a higher level of injury. The mechanism of the function recovery is underlain by the compensatory development of activity in the muscles of the body and capacity of the distal strip of the spinal cord for elaboration of new motor reactions in which the muscles of the extremities participate.

Cauda Equina↗