Effects of short-term immobilization of the upper limb on the somatosensory pathway: a study of short-latency somatosensory evoked potentials.
Takuro Ikeda, Shinichiro Oka, Toru Shibuya and 2 others
PMID 31527993WHAT IT FOUND
After 10 hours of upper limb immobilization in healthy adults, a peripheral sensory nerve response increased, while later spinal and brain responses showed no clear change.
Key findings
01After 10 hours of upper limb immobilization, the N9 amplitude, a peripheral sensory nerve response, increased from 5.7 ± 2.2 μV to 6.8 ± 2.0 μV.
02The N13 and N20 amplitudes and the central somatosensory conduction time did not change significantly after immobilization.
03The authors state that the clinical significance of these changes is unknown because real cast immobilization is not limited to 10 hours.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The participants were healthy adults with no history of significant medical, neurological, or psychiatric disease, and no history of upper limb ligament injury or fracture, so the study does not directly show what happens in casted patients. The left arm was held with a soft bandage and splint, which the authors say may not have fully immobilized it. The study measured nerve responses, not clinical sensory function or physiotherapy test results, and the authors say the relationship to somatosensory function was not clear. The sample was 20 participants, and the authors say larger studies are needed. The immobilization lasted 10 hours, but the authors say cast immobilization cannot be limited to 10 hours, so long-term effects and clinical significance are unknown.
Declared interests
The project was supported by the International University of Health and Welfare. The authors declared no conflict of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that 10 hours of upper limb immobilization causes clinically important sensory impairment. The study was done in healthy adults with a soft bandage, not in casted patients, and the later spinal and brain responses did not change significantly.