Effect of Vibration on Motor Performance: A new Intervention to Improve Bradykinesia in Parkinson’s Disease? (P5.366)

OBJECTIVE: Here we propose to test whether bradykinesia in Parkinson’s disease (PD) can be ameliorated by non-invasive interventions (peripheral tactile vibration) that decrease sensory precision. BACKGROUND: Recently, it has been proposed that in healthy individuals the down weighting of sensory afferents prior to and during active movement is an essential step in initiating movement. Furthermore, it has been proposed that bradykinesia in PD can be recast as a result of a pathology in down weighting the somatosensory signal. METHODS: We assessed motor performance in three groups of 18 right-handed healthy subjects using three tasks: the box and blocks test, the nine hole peg test and a reaction time task. We also measured the frequency and amplitude of tapping performed with the right hand using a cyber glove.We performed the same protocol in 11 PD patients. Each task was repeated under three conditions: 1) with no external stimulus; and 2,3) following 30 seconds of a vibratory stimulus applied to the dominant wrist at a frequency of either 20Hz or 80Hz. RESULTS: As expected healthy controls showed a significant improvement inmotor performance when a vibratory stimulus at 80 Hz was applied compared to 20 Hz vibration(p0.5). Interestingly, PD patients ON medication showed similar results.We recorded EEG from healthy subjects in the absence and presence of a vibratory stimulus (at 20 and 80Hz) to investigate how this peripheral stimulus may modulate oscillatory activity over the sensorimotor cortex in order to understand the mechanism by which peripheral vibration at 80Hz can improve motor performance< CONCLUSIONS: These preliminary data are consistent with a novel and exciting hypothesis to explain that vibrotactile stimulationat 80 Hz results in less slowing and decrement in amplitude of a repetitive hand movement compared to baseline measures. Disclosure: Dr. Macerollo has nothing to disclose. Dr. Palmer has nothing to disclose. Dr. Foltynie has received personal compensation for activities with Abbvie, St. Jude Medical, Medtronic, and Novartis. Dr. Korlipara has nothing to disclose. Dr. Limousin has nothing to disclose. Dr. Edwards has received royalty payments from Oxford University Press. Dr. Kilner has nothing to disclose.