Motor imagery is a mental process that simulates movement in the brain without actual movement or muscle contraction.Motor imagery can be practiced at any time and place without the use of special equipment.Because of its characteristics, it can be used as part of rehabilitation even in patients who have difficulty voluntarily exercising, such as after a stroke, or in cases where exercise is contraindicated early after surgery.
Although the number of systematic reviews and meta-analyses demonstrating the effects of motor imagery practice has increased in recent years, sufficient scientific evidence has not been obtained regarding the neurophysiological mechanisms associated with motor imagery effects.In order to establish evidence for motor imagery practice, it is important to elucidate its neurophysiological mechanism.In particular, improving voluntary movement and motor function requires not only the central nervous system but also the spinal cord, which is the final common pathway for motor output. Since activation of nerve function is important, it is necessary to examine spinal nerve function during motor imagery.
Associate Professor Sumifumi Fumino, Assistant Professor Shueko Onigata, and Professor Toshiaki Suzuki of Kansai Medical University conducted experiments under various conditions using F waves, an index for evaluating spinal nerve function, with the theme of motor imagery and spinal nerve function. We have been considering this.
Numerous previous studies have shown that motor imagery is an effective treatment for improving spinal nerve function.A more specific way to increase the effectiveness of motor imagery practice is to do it in a limb position similar to the movement you want to achieve, rather than just imagining the movement in your head, and imagining the sensation of a joint moving or a muscle contracting. I found it better.In addition, in cases where it is difficult to exert high-intensity muscle strength in clinical settings, it is possible to sufficiently improve spinal nerve function even with exercise imagery with mild muscle contraction intensity, such as 10% of maximum effort.In addition, elderly people and stroke patients often have difficulty remembering the desired exercise clearly, and in such cases, it is recommended to use a mirror or video to observe the exercise while imagining it. can further enhance spinal nerve function.
Next, in order to apply the results of previous research to clinical situations, we examined the effect of motor imagery under maximum effort on muscle strength.As a result, ankle plantar flexion torque significantly increased immediately after performing ankle plantar flexion exercise imagery at 50% contraction strength, indicating that exercise imagery under maximum effort immediately increases muscle strength. became.
We believe that the results obtained in previous studies will provide important knowledge toward establishing evidence for motor imagery practice.
Paper information:[IntechOpen] Motor Imagery in Evidence-Based Physical Therapy
