A research group led by Professor Kimitaka Nakazawa of the University of Tokyo found that the upper limb strength regulation function of people with complete spinal cord injury (motor / sensory paralysis of the lower limbs) is specifically higher than that of wheelchair users and healthy people due to other diseases. discovered.
People with SCI due to accidents or illnesses are paralyzed below the height of the injured spinal cord (high injuries), so it is necessary to adapt to daily life with residual functions above the high injuries.However, most of the conventional studies on people with SCI have focused on body parts below the high injuries, such as regaining walking ability and recovery of paralyzed limbs, and changes in residual functions above the high injuries, especially upper limb motor function. Was unknown.
This time, we measured brain activity and brain volume during a force regulation task for 8 people with SCI and 10 healthy people who had sports experience.As a result, the ability of spinal cord injuries to regulate power was very high, and at that time, "efficiency of nerve conduction" occurred in which the amount of activity in the primary motor cortex of the brain was small.This phenomenon is one of the characteristics showing the development of the nervous system seen in skilled musicians such as professional musicians and athletes, and the same phenomenon occurred in the brains of people with SCI.In addition, a decrease in dependence on the visual cortex was observed, the functional connectivity between the motor cortex and the superior parietal lobule was higher than that of healthy subjects, and the brain structure had an enlarged volume of the superior parietal lobule.
As a result, the superior parietal lobule is the area responsible for kinesthetic integration and postural sensation of the limbs, so it seems that the ability of sensory processing and postural maintenance during force adjustment has stabilized force regulation and reduced dependence on the visual cortex. Be done.These changes have not been reported in studies of subjects with SCI and are referred to as specific adaptations caused by playing sports after SCI.
In the future, it is said that it will be possible to contribute to the creation of a next-generation symbiotic society by creating a mechanism to utilize the abilities of people with disabilities in sports and social life.
