Abstract
We investigated spinal neuron function during relaxation imagery by analyzing F-waves generated from the left thenar muscles in response to stimulation of the left median nerve at the wrist in 10 healthy subjects. F-waves were recorded in a resting position and during, immediately after, and at 5, 10, and 15 min after a 2-min relaxation imagery period. Persistence, F/M amplitude ratio, and latency were analyzed from the recorded F-waves. The F/M amplitude ratio was lower in the relaxation imagery condition than in the resting condition, whereas it either recovered or continued to decrease after relaxation imagery. There were no significant differences in persistence and latency before, during, and after relaxation imagery. These results suggested that 2-min relaxation imagery can decrease spinal neural function in healthy subjects and may be useful as a new type of physical therapy for patients suffering from impaired motor control.
Highlights
Physical therapy using relaxation imagery, which involves active relaxation of the brain, is often used to decrease the abnormally increased muscle tone in patients with spasticity and rigidity
The F/M amplitude ratio was lower in the relaxation imagery
0 REST RELAX RELAX2 POST0 POST5 POST10 POST15 rest: resting position, relax: under relaxation imagery from 0 to 1 min, relax2: under relaxation imagery from 1 to 2 min, post0: immediately after imagery, post5: 5 min after imagery, post10: 10 min after imagery, post15: 15min after imagery function during a 2-min period of relaxation imagery, indicating that 2 min of relaxation imagery is more effective than 1 min for suppressing excitability of the central nervous system (CNS)
Summary
Physical therapy using relaxation imagery, which involves active relaxation of the brain, is often used to decrease the abnormally increased muscle tone in patients with spasticity and rigidity. We have experienced cases where relaxation imagery was effective in patients with poor muscle control due to neurological diseases. We investigated spinal neuron excitability in healthy subjects by analyzing F-waves before, during, and after a 1-min period of relaxation imagery [1]. There were no significant differences in F-waves obtained at rest and during and after relaxation imagery. The reason for this was thought to be the short period of relaxation imagery (1 min). The current study investigated spinal neuron excitability in healthy subjects by analyzing F-waves generated before, during, and after a 2-min period of relaxation imagery, which was expected to have greater effects considering its longer duration
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