Evaluation of Five Tests for Sensitivity to Functional Deficits following Cervical or Thoracic Dorsal Column Transection in the Rat

PLoS ONE, 2016 · DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0150141 · Published: March 2, 2016

Spinal Cord Injury Participation Neurology

Simple Explanation

This study compares five functional tests to assess recovery after spinal cord injury in rats, specifically targeting the dorsal column, which carries sensory information. The researchers evaluated the tape removal test, rope crossing test, CatWalk gait analysis, horizontal ladder, and introduced a new test called the inclined rolling ladder. The inclined rolling ladder is designed to simultaneously test tactile sense and proprioception, potentially making it more sensitive to sensory loss.

Study Duration

8 weeks

Participants

24 female Fischer rats

Evidence Level

Not specified

Key Findings

1
The inclined rolling ladder and horizontal ladder tests were found to be the most sensitive overall in detecting functional deficits after dorsal column injury.
2
Cervical lesions appeared to produce more easily detectable and longer-lasting deficits than thoracic lesions in the horizontal ladder and inclined rolling ladder tests.
3
CatWalk gait analysis revealed that the hind-paw base of support and hind-paw print width were sensitive to dorsal column lesions.

Research Summary

This study evaluated five functional tests in rats with dorsal column injuries at the cervical or thoracic level to determine their sensitivity in detecting functional deficits and their suitability for measuring recovery. The researchers found that whole-time course comparisons using linear mixed models and binomial generalized linear mixed models were sensitive in detecting functional deficits. The horizontal ladder, inclined rolling ladder, and CatWalk gait analysis showed potential for measuring functional recovery following experimental intervention in dorsal column injury models.

Practical Implications

Improved Assessment of Spinal Cord Injury

The study identifies the most sensitive tests for assessing functional deficits after dorsal column injury, enabling more accurate evaluation of experimental treatments.

Refined Experimental Design

The findings suggest that cervical lesions are preferable to thoracic lesions for experimental studies due to more easily detectable and longer-lasting deficits.

Development of New Functional Tests

The introduction and validation of the inclined rolling ladder provide a new tool for simultaneously assessing tactile sense and proprioception.

Study Limitations

1
Spontaneous recovery occurs within several weeks, making functional deficits too small to detect at individual time points for many tests.
2
The study did not apply multiple testing corrections, which may affect the interpretation of results.
3
The variability from week to week on the inclined rolling ladder test was probably dependent on the randomised arrangement of bars each week.

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