Upper Limb Sensory-Motor Control During Exposure to Different Mechanical Environments in Multiple Sclerosis Subjects With No Clinical Disability
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune and neurodegenerative disease resulting in motor impairments associated with muscle weakness and lack of movement coordination. The goal of this work was to quantify upper limb motor deficits in asymptomatic MS subjects with a robot-based assessment including...
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| Format: | Article |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2022-07-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Neurorobotics |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnbot.2022.920118/full |
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| author | Camilla Pierella Camilla Pierella Laura Pellegrino Margit Muller Matilde Inglese Matilde Inglese Claudio Solaro Martina Coscia Maura Casadio |
| author_facet | Camilla Pierella Camilla Pierella Laura Pellegrino Margit Muller Matilde Inglese Matilde Inglese Claudio Solaro Martina Coscia Maura Casadio |
| author_sort | Camilla Pierella |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune and neurodegenerative disease resulting in motor impairments associated with muscle weakness and lack of movement coordination. The goal of this work was to quantify upper limb motor deficits in asymptomatic MS subjects with a robot-based assessment including performance and muscle synergies analysis. A total of 7 subjects (MS: 3 M−4 F; 42 ± 10 years) with clinically definite MS according to McDonald criteria, but with no clinical disability, and 7 age- and sex-matched subjects without a history of neurological disorders participated in the study. All subjects controlled a cursor on the computer screen by moving their hand or applying forces in 8 coplanar directions at their self-selected speed. They grasped the handle of a robotic planar manipulandum that generated four different environments: null, assistive or resistive forces, and rigid constraint. Simultaneously, the activity of 15 upper body muscles was recorded. Asymptomatic MS subjects generated less smooth and less accurate cursor trajectories than control subjects in controlling a force profile, while the end-point error was significantly different also in the other environments. The EMG analysis revealed different muscle activation patterns in MS subjects when exerting isometric forces or when moving in presence of external forces generated by a robot. While the two populations had the same number and similar structure of muscle synergies, they had different activation profiles. These results suggested that a task requiring to control forces against a rigid environment allows better than movement tasks to detect early sensory-motor signs related to the onset of symptoms of multiple sclerosis and to differentiate between stages of the disease. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T07:22:55Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-94fa7b58a5b2491384aa58de0bd7c6c6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1662-5218 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T07:22:55Z |
| publishDate | 2022-07-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Neurorobotics |
| spelling | doaj.art-94fa7b58a5b2491384aa58de0bd7c6c62022-12-22T03:42:16ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Neurorobotics1662-52182022-07-011610.3389/fnbot.2022.920118920118Upper Limb Sensory-Motor Control During Exposure to Different Mechanical Environments in Multiple Sclerosis Subjects With No Clinical DisabilityCamilla Pierella0Camilla Pierella1Laura Pellegrino2Margit Muller3Matilde Inglese4Matilde Inglese5Claudio Solaro6Martina Coscia7Maura Casadio8Department of Neurosciences, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics, and Maternal and Children's Sciences (DINOGMI), University of Genoa, Genoa, ItalyDepartment of Informatics, Bioengineering, Robotics and Systems Engineering (DIBRIS), University of Genoa, Genoa, ItalyDepartment of Informatics, Bioengineering, Robotics and Systems Engineering (DIBRIS), University of Genoa, Genoa, ItalyDepartment of Rehabilitation, C.R.R.F. “Mons. L. Novarese”, Moncrivello, ItalyDepartment of Neurosciences, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics, and Maternal and Children's Sciences (DINOGMI), University of Genoa, Genoa, ItalyIRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, ItalyDepartment of Rehabilitation, C.R.R.F. “Mons. L. Novarese”, Moncrivello, Italyconfinis ag, Düdingen, SwitzerlandDepartment of Informatics, Bioengineering, Robotics and Systems Engineering (DIBRIS), University of Genoa, Genoa, ItalyMultiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune and neurodegenerative disease resulting in motor impairments associated with muscle weakness and lack of movement coordination. The goal of this work was to quantify upper limb motor deficits in asymptomatic MS subjects with a robot-based assessment including performance and muscle synergies analysis. A total of 7 subjects (MS: 3 M−4 F; 42 ± 10 years) with clinically definite MS according to McDonald criteria, but with no clinical disability, and 7 age- and sex-matched subjects without a history of neurological disorders participated in the study. All subjects controlled a cursor on the computer screen by moving their hand or applying forces in 8 coplanar directions at their self-selected speed. They grasped the handle of a robotic planar manipulandum that generated four different environments: null, assistive or resistive forces, and rigid constraint. Simultaneously, the activity of 15 upper body muscles was recorded. Asymptomatic MS subjects generated less smooth and less accurate cursor trajectories than control subjects in controlling a force profile, while the end-point error was significantly different also in the other environments. The EMG analysis revealed different muscle activation patterns in MS subjects when exerting isometric forces or when moving in presence of external forces generated by a robot. While the two populations had the same number and similar structure of muscle synergies, they had different activation profiles. These results suggested that a task requiring to control forces against a rigid environment allows better than movement tasks to detect early sensory-motor signs related to the onset of symptoms of multiple sclerosis and to differentiate between stages of the disease.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnbot.2022.920118/fullmotor controlmultiple sclerosisupper limbrobotic assessmentmuscle synergiesspinal maps |
| spellingShingle | Camilla Pierella Camilla Pierella Laura Pellegrino Margit Muller Matilde Inglese Matilde Inglese Claudio Solaro Martina Coscia Maura Casadio Upper Limb Sensory-Motor Control During Exposure to Different Mechanical Environments in Multiple Sclerosis Subjects With No Clinical Disability Frontiers in Neurorobotics motor control multiple sclerosis upper limb robotic assessment muscle synergies spinal maps |
| title | Upper Limb Sensory-Motor Control During Exposure to Different Mechanical Environments in Multiple Sclerosis Subjects With No Clinical Disability |
| title_full | Upper Limb Sensory-Motor Control During Exposure to Different Mechanical Environments in Multiple Sclerosis Subjects With No Clinical Disability |
| title_fullStr | Upper Limb Sensory-Motor Control During Exposure to Different Mechanical Environments in Multiple Sclerosis Subjects With No Clinical Disability |
| title_full_unstemmed | Upper Limb Sensory-Motor Control During Exposure to Different Mechanical Environments in Multiple Sclerosis Subjects With No Clinical Disability |
| title_short | Upper Limb Sensory-Motor Control During Exposure to Different Mechanical Environments in Multiple Sclerosis Subjects With No Clinical Disability |
| title_sort | upper limb sensory motor control during exposure to different mechanical environments in multiple sclerosis subjects with no clinical disability |
| topic | motor control multiple sclerosis upper limb robotic assessment muscle synergies spinal maps |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnbot.2022.920118/full |
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