Abstract
Background : Changes in firing pattern and in the recruitment order of single motor unit(MU) have been claimed to be characteristic of central motor lesions, and a reduced firing rate was found in upper motor neuron lesions. But these findings have been rarely studied before in Korea, so we studied initial MU recruitment pattern in stroke patients with hemiparesis. Methods : We studied six patients(3 men and 3 women) whose mean age was $60.6{\pm}7.4$ years. A mean $20.6{\pm}16.2$ months had elapsed since the stroke. To compare the initial MU activation patterns in proximal and distal segments of paretic limb with their contalateral unaffected counterparts, we studied the onset and recruitment intervals in biceps brachii(BB) and first dorsal interossei(FDI) muscles in paretic and healthy arms. In a single muscle we examined from 5 to 10 individual MUs. And in a single motor unit, both the onset interval and the recruitment interval was examined. Results : The mean onset interval in paretic limb was significantly(p<0.05) longer than unaffected limb at proximal and distal location: BB $118.5{\pm}17.8$ msec vs $96.1{\pm}8.3$ msec(n=58); FDI $125.8{\pm}16.7$ msec vs $101.5{\pm}17.2$ msec(n=38). The mean recruitment interval in paretic limb was also significantly(p<0.05) longer than unaffected limb: BB $87.7{\pm}14.9$ msec vs $73.4{\pm}11.5$ msec(n=53); FDI $96.3{\pm}16.4$ msec vs $87.7{\pm}14.1$ msec(n=38). Conclusion : The first recruited MU had a lower baseline firing rate and the second recruited motor unit potential appeared earlier in paretic than in healthy muscles. And these findings may explain one of the reasons for paresis in patients with stroke.