Postural stability of canoeing and kayaking young male athletes during quiet stance.

We studied the postural stability of 23 canoeing and kayaking young athletes and 15 healthy untrained age matched subjects during quiet and sensory conflicted stance (standing on stable and foam support with open and closed eyes). We measured with a force platform the center of pressure excursions and applied mean sway amplitude (MA), mean sway velocity (SV) and their Romberg ratios, and sway dispersion index to evaluate standing balance. During standing with eyes open, the athletes in comparison to non-athletes showed in sagittal and frontal plane greater MA and SV when the support was stable and smaller MA and SV when it was unstable.

Interactions between cortical rhythms and spiking activity of single basal ganglia neurons in the normal and parkinsonian state.

In order to evaluate the specific interactions between cortical oscillations and basal ganglia-spiking activity under normal and parkinsonian conditions, we examined the relationship between frontal cortex electroencephalographic (EEG) signals and simultaneously recorded neuronal activity in the internal and external segments of the pallidum or the subthalamic nucleus (STN) in 3 rhesus monkeys. After we made recordings in the normal state, hemiparkinsonism was induced with intracarotid injections of the dopaminergic neurotoxin 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) in one animal, followed by additional recordings. Spiking activity in the pallidum and STN was associated with significant shifts in the level of EEG synchronization.

Oscillations in the basal ganglia under normal conditions and in movement disorders.

A substantial body of work within the last decade has demonstrated that there is a variety of oscillatory phenomena that occur in the basal ganglia and in associated regions of the thalamus and cortex. Most of the earlier studies focused on recordings in rodents and primates. More recently, significant advances have been made in this field of research through the analysis of basal ganglia field potentials recorded from implanted deep brain stimulation electrodes in the basal ganglia of human patients with Parkinson's disease and other disorders.

Changes in plantar pressures during bipedal stance with different stance width.

We studied the influence of stance width and vision on the plantar pressures for the left and right foot during bipedal quiet standing on the pressure-sensitive insoles. The support widening shifted the left and right centers-of-foot-pressure (CFPs) laterally and forward (right foot), diminished SDs of: the left and right mean plantar pressures (MPPs), the anteroposterior and mediolateral displacements of left and right CFPs. It also decreased negative correlations between left and right MPPs and between mediolateral displacements of left and right CFP and increased positive correlation between anteroposterior displacements of left and right CFPs, more expressive with eyes-open.

Effects of maturity and training on bimanual ballistic isometric handgrip.

We studied maturity and training effects on maximal force and accuracy of force targeting during ballistic handgrips. Male right-handed nontrained adolescents (16-20 yrs.), trained adolescents (oarsmen--16-18 yrs.

Feedforward ankle strategy of balance during quiet stance in adults.

1. We studied quiet stance investigating strategies for maintaining balance. Normal subjects stood with natural stance and with feet together, with eyes open or closed.

Effects of diminished and conflicting sensory information on balance in patients with cerebellar deficits.

We studied the effects of altered sensory information on standing balance in 25 patients with cortical cerebellar atrophy (CCA), nine patients with olivoponto-cerebellar atrophy (OPCA), and 10 normal subjects. The total sway path and its components, the anteroposterior (AP) sway path and the lateral sway path, were measured under six conditions: (1) standing on a fixed platform with the eyes open and visual surroundings fixed, (2) standing on a fixed platform with the eyes closed, (3) standing on a fixed platform with the eyes open and visual surroundings AP sway referenced, (4) standing on an AP sway-referenced platform with the eyes open and visual surroundings fixed, (5) standing on an AP sway-referenced platform with the eyes closed, and (6) standing on an AP sway-referenced platform with the eyes open and visual surroundings AP sway referenced. Patients swayed more than normal subjects during normal stance (condition 1), when the visual information was absent (condition 2) or distorted (condition 3), and when the proprioceptive information from the ankles was distorted (condition 4).

Mechanically evoked cerebral potentials to sudden ankle dorsiflexion in human subjects during standing.

Mechanically evoked cerebral potentials (MECP) were studied in humans standing on a movable platform with three different stance widths. A sudden platform tilt of 4 degrees produced ankle dorsiflexion and resulted in scalp potentials of five distinct components, the earliest being a positive deflection at 35/60 ms. Their latencies have shown fairly consistent values among the three stance widths, while the amplitudes underwent some significant changes under the wide stance condition as compared with tightly close feet.

Use of buspirone for treatment of cerebellar ataxia. An open-label study.

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of buspirone hydrochloride, a serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine1A) agonist, in treating patients with cerebellar ataxia.

Design: Open-label study in which 20 patients (14 with cerebellar cortical atrophy and six with olivopontocerebellar atrophy) received buspirone hydrochloride, up to 60 mg/d, for 8 weeks.

Setting: Research hospital.

Visual control of human stance on a narrow and soft support surface.

The influence of additional visual feedback (VF) on stance control was studied under conditions of changed afferent information from the foot sole and ankle joint due to different support surfaces. The changes of body sway amplitudes were analyzed and their frequency spectrum was established. The effect of visual feedback on the amplitude and frequency characteristics of human stance was manifested as: a) a decrease of the mean amplitude of body sway during visual feedback, corresponding to the decrease of power spectrum density (PSD) of stabilograms in the frequency range below 0.

Somatosensory evoked potentials during standing posture on different support surface.

Somatosensory evoked potentials in response to stimulation of the posterior tibial nerve at the ankle were recorded during standing on stable ground or on unstable support surface (seesaw) or on support surface short in relation to foot length. During standing on the seesaw and on the short support surface a decrease in the amplitude of the early component (N32-P39) was observed. The amplitude of N49-P58 decreased during standing on the short support surface.

M-response latencies changes as a tool for studying neuromuscular conduction during cyclic maximal voluntary contractions.

M-response changes during cyclic maximal isometric voluntary forearm flexions were studied using a new method based on the following: 1) Monopolar stimulation of terminal motor point of the brachial biceps muscle by large surface electrodes; 2) Monopolar leading-off by a surface electrode placed on the middle between motor endplates and muscle fibers end; 3) Arm and forearm immobilization; 4) Averaging of M-response triggered by the stimulus during contraction; and 5) Latencies to the peak of negative (L1) and of final positive phase (L2) and peak-to-peak amplitude (PTPA) were measured, and peak-to-peak time (PTPT), which reflected muscle conduction velocity and leading-off electrode-to-end of fibers distance was calculated. Four cycles of 30-s contraction and 5-min rest were performed. Eight M-responses were evoked with a 1 Hz frequency starting from 5th s of the cycle.

Postural adjustments upon arm movement during sinusoidal induced body oscillations.

Postural adjustments due to the fast forward right arm elevation, performed during sinusoidal induced body oscillations in the phase of platform-induced dorsal, as well as plantar flexion of the foot were studied. Start times of the changes in the cyclic way of the center-of-gravity position (SG) and right ankle goniogram (GG) as well as the EMG onsets of the right soleus (S), anterior tibial (AT) and femoral biceps (FB) muscles relative to the ipsilateral anterior deltoid muscle (AD) EMG onset were measured. The EMG onset of FB muscle was found to occur significantly before the EMG onset of the AD muscle during plantar flexion series, wherever during dorsal flexion series the EMG onset of the AT muscle was significantly before the AD muscle EMG onset.

Effect of body and foot positions on the somatosensory evoked potentials.

Somatosensory evoked potentials in response to stimulation of the posterior tibial nerve at the ankle were recorded during sitting and standing with variable foot positions. During standing a decrease in the amplitude of the early positive component was observed. The deviation of the foot from a horizontal position was associated with an increase in the amplitude of the early negative component.

Postural adjustments associated with a fast voluntary arm movement at various foot positions.

The aim of the study was to further investigate postural adjustments associated with a fast voluntary arm elevation at various foot positions. The subjects stood upright on a force platform and participated in 3 sessions according to foot position: horizontal position, dorsal and plantar flexion of 6 degrees. EMG activity of anterior deltoid muscle (DA) and of ipsilateral and contralateral soleus (SD, SS), biceps femoris (BFd, BFs) and ipsilateral anterior tibial (TAd) muscles, initial acceleration (Acc) and stabilogram change (Sg) were recorded.

Motor unit activity during different functional states of the neuromuscular system.

The study showed that the mean interspike interval (ISI) and the variability of ISIs increased with fatigue for both low and high threshold motor units (MUs). The recruitment threshold tension decreased for both the low and high threshold MUs while the recruitment threshold in % of maximal voluntary contraction changed selectively because of decrease of muscle force. During ischaemia after an initial decrease of mean ISI and ISIs' variability there was an essential increase of variability of ISIs at almost the same mean ISI followed by a considerable final increase of both parameters.

Effect of ischaemia on the potentials of human single muscle fibres.

The changes in the parameters of the extracellular potentials of single muscle fibres are studied during ischaemia. These changes have two phases, preceded in part of the cases by a transient phase. The decrease in the propagation velocity (V) of the excitation predominates in the first phase, therefore, the length of the depolarized area (b) is shortened.