EP 5. Decrement of the effect of neuromuscular electrical stimulation over time in chronic stroke patients

Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) has been applied as one rehabilitative treatment option in stroke patients (Quandt and Hummel, 2014) and a meta-analysis recently showed its positive effects on motor recovery (Stein et al., 2015). One major challenge in stroke patients, especially severely impaired, is the opening of the hand due to extensor weakness accompanied by flexor spasticity. Here, NMES could provide assistance and substitute lost function. Studies in healthy controls have shown, however, that the rapid onset of muscle fatigue is a critical limitation for practical use.

Source: Clinical Neurophysiology - August 5, 2016 Category: Neuroscience Authors: F. Quandt, J. Feldheim, J.C. Loitz, D. Wolff, M. Rohm, R. Rupp, W.H. Krautschneider, F.C. Hummel Source Type: research