Pereira Catarina Ramos, Machado Jorge, Criado Begoña, Santos Rubim, Reis Ana Mafalda, Ramos Bruno, Santos Maria João, Greten Henry Johannes
ICBAS - Abel Salazar Institute for Biomedical Sciences, University of Porto, Portugal.
Piaget Institute, Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal.
Clin Park Relat Disord. 2025 Apr 9;12:100324. doi: 10.1016/j.prdoa.2025.100324. eCollection 2025.
The investigation of rigidity physiology in Parkinson's Disease involves the examination of reflexes. Parkinsonian patients often demonstrate reduced sensitivity in polysynaptic reflexes within the leg extensor muscles, which is correlated with their postural instability. The compensatory mechanisms for impaired proprioceptive reflex function may involve alterations in intrinsic muscle stiffness. The interplay between gait and reflexes is intricately linked to the nervous system's functioning and motor control. Certain reflexes, such as patellar reflex, play a pivotal role in maintaining walking and posture. Ensuring the integrity of these reflexes is essential for facilitating smooth and efficient walking.
To analyze the behavior of patellar reflex in four Parkinson's Disease patients undergoing an acupuncture treatment protocol.
This study adopts a case series design. Reflex outcomes based on amplitude and velocity were assessed at six different time moments throughout a month-long treatment protocol using the MP 36, Biopac Systems.
Over the long term, a tendency for an improvement in range of movement and velocity of the patellar reflex, was observed. Nevertheless, in specific cases, a reduction in the amplitude during acute effects was also found.
Our findings suggest that the acupuncture protocol used may lead to a cumulative improvement in efficacy of patellar reflex in patients with Parkinson's disease. However, further in-depth research, including a statistical evaluation with a larger participant pool, is necessary to validate and confirm these promising preliminary results.
帕金森病僵硬生理学的研究涉及反射检查。帕金森病患者腿部伸肌的多突触反射敏感性通常会降低，这与他们的姿势不稳有关。本体感觉反射功能受损的代偿机制可能涉及内在肌肉僵硬度的改变。步态与反射之间的相互作用与神经系统的功能和运动控制密切相关。某些反射，如髌反射，在维持行走和姿势方面起着关键作用。确保这些反射的完整性对于促进平稳高效的行走至关重要。
分析4例接受针灸治疗方案的帕金森病患者的髌反射行为。
本研究采用病例系列设计。在为期一个月的治疗方案中，使用Biopac Systems公司的MP 36在六个不同时间点评估基于幅度和速度的反射结果。
从长期来看，观察到髌反射的运动范围和速度有改善的趋势。然而，在特定情况下，急性效应期间幅度也有降低。
我们的研究结果表明，所使用的针灸方案可能会使帕金森病患者髌反射的疗效得到累积改善。然而，需要进一步深入研究，包括对更大样本量进行统计评估，以验证和确认这些有前景的初步结果。
