Browse the latest research summaries in the field of physiology for spinal cord injury patients and caregivers.
Showing 201-210 of 321 results
Brain Res, 2015 • November 19, 2015
The goal of this study was to examine the effects of vibration in lean and obese Zucker rats to determine if the elevation in glucose and insulin in obese rats had a significant effect on sensation or...
KEY FINDING: Obese Zucker rats displayed very few changes in sensorineural function as measured by transcutaneous electrical stimulation immediately after vibration exposure.
Physiol Rep, 2015 • November 1, 2015
The study examined the expression of microRNAs and myostatin in skeletal muscle of humans with spinal cord injury. It found a progressive decline in microRNA-208b and microRNA-499-5p expression after ...
KEY FINDING: Skeletal muscle expression of microRNA-208b and microRNA-499-5p progressively declined within the first year after cervical spinal cord injury in humans, with changes maintained in long-standing injury.
The Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine, 2016 • July 1, 2016
This study compared cardiovascular responses to peak voluntary exercise in males with cervical spinal cord injury (SCI) and able-bodied controls. The key finding was that blood pressure did not increa...
KEY FINDING: Blood pressure did not significantly increase in the Tetra group (cervical SCI) following maximal arm crank exercise, unlike the significant increase observed in the Control group.
PLoS ONE, 2016 • January 21, 2016
The study investigated the influence of body position on the recruitment of neural structures during lumbar transcutaneous spinal cord stimulation in able-bodied individuals. The results showed that b...
KEY FINDING: Responses to the second stimulus were decreased to 14% ±5% in the supine position, to 30%±5% in the standing, and to only 80%±5% in the prone position.
Exp Neurol, 2016 • April 1, 2016
The study investigates the impact of embryonic midline brainstem (MB) cell transplantation on respiratory outcomes after cervical spinal cord injury (cSCI) in rats. The researchers found that rats wit...
KEY FINDING: MB grafts had a more robust respiratory response during a respiratory challenge (7% inspired CO2).
Aging and Disease, 2016 • February 1, 2016
This review highlights the importance of skeletal muscle health for overall well-being and physical function, especially in the context of aging and neurological conditions like stroke and spinal cord...
KEY FINDING: Muscle size and strength decrease with disuse due to decreased protein synthesis and increased protein breakdown, leading to muscle atrophy and weakness, which can be exacerbated by conditions like stroke and spinal cord injury (SCI).
Behav Brain Res, 2016 • July 1, 2016
The study assessed muscular dysfunction following unilateral cSCI using awake behaving electromyography (EMG) simultaneously recorded from the biceps and triceps of the impaired forelimb. Volitional f...
KEY FINDING: C5/C6 hemicontusion reduced volitional forelimb strength by more than 50% despite weekly rehabilitation for one month post-injury.
Physiol Rep, 2017 • February 1, 2017
This study investigated the relationship between body composition and mitochondrial mass and activity in skeletal muscle biopsies from individuals with SCI. The study found that increased adipose tiss...
KEY FINDING: Citrate synthase (CS) activity, a marker of mitochondrial mass, was inversely related to %body fat, %leg fat, %trunk fat, and %android fat.
Spinal Cord, 2017 • July 1, 2017
This study demonstrated a negative correlation between damaged cord ratios and both walking ability and plantarflexion torque output in participants with iSCI. These findings suggest that axial spinal...
KEY FINDING: Damage ratios were negatively correlated with distance walked in 6 minutes, average daily strides, and maximum plantarflexion torque.
J Biomech, 2017 • April 11, 2017
This study aimed to quantify anthropometric parameters in individuals with SCI and examine the effects of injury duration and obesity. The results indicate that mass distribution and tissue compositio...
KEY FINDING: Chronic SCI is associated with a shift in mass proportion from lower limbs to the trunk and upper arms, and decreased lean mass proportion, especially in the trunk.