Neuroreport
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Clinical Trial
Plasticity in the motor system related to therapy-induced improvement of movement after stroke.
Neuroplasticity might play a beneficial role in the recovery of function after stroke but empirical evidence for this is lacking thus far. Constraint-induced (CI) therapy was used to increase the use of a paretic upper extremity in four hemiparetic stroke patients. ⋯ The source locations associated with affected hand movement were unusual at follow-up because activation of the ipsilateral hemisphere was found in the absence of mirror movements of the unaffected hand. This long-term change may be considered as an initial demonstration of large-scale neuroplasticity associated with increased use of the paretic limb after application of CI therapy.
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Cortical activity can be substantially changed by the type of anaesthetic used, and by its dose level. For easy monitoring of depth of anaesthesia we describe the changes in electroencephalogram and electrocardiogram accompanying changes in depth of anaesthesia in the cat. Anaesthesia was induced by the volatile anaesthetic isoflurane. ⋯ The electrocardiogram also shows substantial changes in contamination due to muscle fasciculations with anaesthesia level. Fasciculations appear as noise in the electrocardiogram. The amplitude of the electrical muscle activity contaminating the ECG can be easily used for the maintainance of a constant level of anaesthesia during a neurophysiological experiment.