Do pursuit movement tasks lead to differential changes in early somatosensory evoked potentials related to motor learning compared with typing tasks?

Central nervous system (CNS) plasticity is essential for development; however, recent research has demonstrated its role in pathology, particularly following overuse and repetition. Previous studies investigating changes in sensorimotor integration (SMI) have used relatively simple paradigms resulting in minimal changes in neural activity, as determined through the use of somatosensory evoked potentials (SEPs). This study sought to utilize complex tasks and compare separate motor paradigms to determine which one best facilitates long-term learning. Spinal, brainstem, and cortical SEPs were recorded following median nerve stimulation at the wrist pre- and postinterventions. Eighteen participants performed the same paradigms, a control condition of 10 min of mental recitation and two interventions, one consisting of 10 min of tracing and the other 10 min of repetitive typing. Significant increases in the N13, N20, P25, and N30 SEP peaks were seen for both interventions. A significant decrease in the N24 SEP peak was observed for both interventions. Significant improvements in accuracy were seen for both interventions postacquisition but only for tracing during retention. The changes seen following motor learning were congruent with those associated with long-term learning, which was also reflected by significant increases in accuracy during retention. Tracing or the pursuit movement paradigm was shown to be a more effective learning tool. The identification of a task that is sufficiently novel and complex, leading to robust changes in SEP peaks, indicates a task that can be utilized in future work to study clinical populations and the effect of experimental interventions on SMI.