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Modulations of soleus H‐reflex excitability during gait initiation: Central versus peripheral influences
Author(s) -
Trimble Mark H.,
Brunt Denis,
Jeon HyeSeon,
Kim HyeongDong
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
muscle and nerve
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.025
H-Index - 145
eISSN - 1097-4598
pISSN - 0148-639X
DOI - 10.1002/mus.1158
Subject(s) - tibialis anterior muscle , physical medicine and rehabilitation , gait , h reflex , soleus muscle , reflex , medicine , peripheral , electromyography , psychology , anatomy , anesthesia , skeletal muscle
Soleus and tibialis anterior electromyogram (EMG) and soleus H‐reflexes were recorded from the stance limb of an individual who suffered a traumatic peroneal nerve injury and of four nonimpaired individuals during gait initiation. The control subjects also initiated walking after swaying forward (sway‐gait initiation), which eliminated the initial tibialis anterior activation. During the initial period of gait initiation, H‐reflexes were depressed to 43% of standing values during normal‐gait initiation and 86% during sway‐gait initiation in the nonimpaired subjects. H‐reflexes of the nerve‐injured subject were depressed to 37%, even though no tibialis anterior EMG was observed. The findings support the view that reciprocal inhibition of the soleus during a task, which normally involves tibialis anterior activation, is due to a centrally mediated process. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Muscle Nerve 24: 1371–1379, 2001