Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41940294›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in neurology

Transspinal direct current stimulation as targeted therapy to increase motor neuron output and restore inhibition in human spinal cord injury.

Abdullah M Sayed Ahmad, Maria Knikou

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in neurology. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Abdullah M Sayed AhmadKlab4Recovery Research Program, The City University of New York, New York, NY, United States.
Maria KnikouKlab4Recovery Research Program, The City University of New York, New York, NY, United States.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: In this clinical trial, we evaluated changes in the output of motoneurons and spinal inhibitory mechanisms across multiple spinal segments before and after a series of transspinal direct current stimulation (tsDCS) sessions in humans with and without spinal cord injury (SCI). Methods: Ten people with chronic SCI and ten healthy participants received daily tsDCS over the low thoracic area while supine with an average stimulation intensity of 2.28 ± 0.02 mA for one hour. Participants with SCI and healthy subjects participated in an average of 15 sessions and 10 sessions, respectively. One day before and 1-2 days after cessation of stimulation sessions, we evaluated the recruitment input-output curves of transspinal evoked potentials (TEPs) and TEPs homosynaptic and postactivation depression in response to low frequency and paired transspinal stimuli. Results: We found significant changes in the spinal motor output for 10/16 muscles in the American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) Impairment Scale (AIS) A-B injury, 8/16 muscles in the AIS D, and 10/16 muscles in healthy subjects with facilitation or inhibition to be muscle-dependent. Facilitation was exerted mostly to distal muscles and inhibition to proximal hip muscles. TEPs homosynaptic depression at baseline was similar across subject groups, while TEPs postactivation depression was of lesser strength in the right soleus and medial gastrocnemius in AIS A-B compared to healthy subjects. tsDCS potentiated TEPs postactivation depression of the right soleus and left peroneus longus muscles in AIS A-B but remained unchanged in AIS D and healthy subjects. TEPs homosynaptic depression remained unchanged in all subject groups. Discussion: This study showed that tsDCS alters the net motor output across multiple spinal segments, potentiates postactivation depression in AIS A-B, and does not affect homosynaptic inhibition in AIS D and healthy subjects. These results provide the first systematic support for tsDCS as a therapeutic intervention in SCI.

Indexed as

multiple sessionsneuromodulationneurorecoveryrecruitment of motoneuronsspinal cord injuryspinal inhibitiontransspinal direct current stimulation

Identifiers

PMID41940294
PMCPMC13047422

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.