Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation Does Not Influence Spinal Excitability in Multiple Sclerosis Patients

Martina Scalia
ORCID logo ,
Riccardo Borzuola
,
Martina Parrella
,
Giovanna Borriello
* ORCID logo ,
Francesco Sica
,
Fabrizia Monteleone
,
Elisabetta Maida
ORCID logo ,
Andrea Macaluso
ORCID logo
Version 1 : Received: 14 December 2023 / Approved: 28 January 2024 / Online: 29 January 2024 (03:59:03 CET)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Scalia, M.; Borzuola, R.; Parrella, M.; Borriello, G.; Sica, F.; Monteleone, F.; Maida, E.; Macaluso, A. Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation Does Not Influence Spinal Excitability in Multiple Sclerosis Patients. J. Clin. Med. 2024, 13, 704. Scalia, M.; Borzuola, R.; Parrella, M.; Borriello, G.; Sica, F.; Monteleone, F.; Maida, E.; Macaluso, A. Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation Does Not Influence Spinal Excitability in Multiple Sclerosis Patients. J. Clin. Med. 2024, 13, 704.

Abstract

Background: Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) has beneficial effects on physical functions in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients. However, the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying these functional improvements are still unclear. This study aims at comparing acute responses in spinal excitability, as measured by soleus Hoffmann reflex (H-reflex), between MS patients and healthy individuals, following three experimental conditions involving the ankle planta flexor muscles: 1) passive NMES (pNMES); 2) NMES superimposed to isometric voluntary contraction (NMES+); and 3) isometric voluntary contraction (ISO). Methods: 20 MS patients (MSp) and 20 healthy individuals as control group (CG) took part in a single experimental session. During each condition, participants performed 15 repetitions of 6 seconds at 20% of maximal voluntary isometric contraction, with 6 seconds of recovery between repetitions. Before and after each condition, H-reflex amplitudes were recorded. Results: In MSp, H-reflex amplitude did not change following any experimental condition (ISO: p = 0.506; pNMES: p = 0.068; NMES+: p = 0.126). In CG, H-reflex amplitude significantly increased following NMES+ (p = 0.01), decreased after pNMES (p = 0.000) and was unaltered following ISO (p = 0.829). Conclusion: the different H-reflex responses between MS and CG might reflect a reduced ability of MS patients in modulating spinal excitability.

Keywords

electric stimulation; H-reflex; spinal excitability; multiple sclerosis; soleus; GABA; presynaptic inhibition; rehabilitation

Subject

Medicine and Pharmacology, Neuroscience and Neurology

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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