Upper limb asymmetries in the perception of proprioceptively determined dynamic position sense (original) (raw)
Related papers
Upper limb asymmetries in the utilization of proprioceptive feedback
Experimental Brain Research, 2006
Despite the importance of proprioception during upper limb movement, the extent to which arm/ hemisphere asymmetries exist in the utilization of proprioceptive feedback remains unclear. In the present study, movement accuracy and arm dynamics were examined in 20 right-handed adults during a proprioceptive matching task that required subjects to actively match remembered target positions of the elbow with the contralateral arm. As hypothesized, the results indicated an accuracy advantage in favor of the nonpreferred left arm reflected by smaller absolute matching errors when compared to the preferred right arm. This advantage was most pronounced for larger amplitude movements and was not associated with any limb-specific difference in movement strategy as indicated by the dynamics of the matching movement. These results extend current theories of handedness by demonstrating that, in right-handed individuals, the non-preferred arm/ hemisphere system is more adept at utilizing positionrelated proprioceptive information than the preferred arm/hemisphere system.
Upper Limb Asymmetries in the Matching of Proprioceptive Versus Visual Targets
Journal of Neurophysiology, 2008
The purpose of the current study was to determine the extent to which “sensory dominance” exists in right-handers with respect to the utilization of proprioceptive versus visual feedback. Thirteen right-handed adults performed two target-matching tasks using instrumented manipulanda. In the proprioceptive matching task, the left or right elbow of blindfolded subjects was passively extended by a torque motor system to a target position and held for 3 s before being returned to the start position. The target angle was then matched with either the ipsilateral or contralateral arm. In the second task, visual matching, circular targets were briefly projected to either side of a visual fixation point located in front of the subject. Subjects then matched the target positions with a laser pointer by moving either the ipsilateral or contralateral arm. Overall, marked arm differences in accuracy were seen based on the type of sensory feedback used for target presentation. For the propriocept...
Upper Limb Asymmetries in the Utilization of Movement-related Sensory Feedback
2007
2.5-Mean (+/-SEM) group differences in constant error for proprioceptive (left panel) and visual (right panel) target matching tasks. 2.6-Ensemble averaged velocity profiles during target matching for a representative subject in each experimental condition. 49 2.7-Mean (+/-SEM) group differences in the peak velocity of matching movements made to proprioceptive (top panel) and visual (bottom panel) targets. 50 2.8-Mean (+/-SEM) group differences in the percent time to peak velocity of matching movements made to proprioceptive (top panel) and visual (bottom panel) targets. 2.9-Mean (+/-SEM) group differences in the smoothness of matching movements made to proprioceptive (top panel) and visual (bottom panel) targets. 3.1-Experimental setup for velocity matching task. vii 3.2-Ensemble averaged velocity profiles for a representative subject in each experimental condition. 74 3.3-Mean (+/-SEM) average acceleration errors. 3.4-Comparison of average acceleration error for the preferred versus non-preferred arm matching in the ipsilateral remembered task. 3.5-Mean (+/-SEM) peak velocity errors. 78 3.6-Mean (+/-SEM) average deceleration errors. 3.7-Mean (+/-SEM) area under the curve errors. 4.1-Experimental setup for dynamic position matching. 4.2-Representative data for 30 deg dynamic position matching in the ipsilateral remembered and contralateral remembered conditions. 4.3-Mean (+/-SEM) absolute errors in dynamic position matching for 10, 20 and 30 deg targets in the ipsilateral remembered (left panel) and contralateral remembered (right panel) tasks. 101 4.4-Mean (+/-SEM) constant errors in dynamic position matching for 10, 20 and 30 deg targets in the ipsilateral remembered (left panel) and contralateral remembered (right panel) tasks. 102 4.5-Mean (+/-SEM) variable errors in dynamic position matching for 10, 20 and 30 deg targets in the ipsilateral remembered (left panel) and contralateral remembered (right panel) tasks. 104 4.6-The effect of target determination speed on dynamic position matching error. 5.1-Summary of overall arm differences demonstrated during the visual and proprioceptive target matching tasks utilized in this dissertation. 5.2-Sample tasks demonstrating preferred right arm dependence on visual feedback and non-preferred arm reliance on proprioception.
Behavioural Brain Research, 2009
Although proprioception consists of static (i.e. position) and dynamic (i.e. movement) components, most studies regarding the matching of proprioceptive targets have focused only on position. Further, these position-matching studies have recently indicated that proprioceptive ability is influenced by several factors including task difficulty and arm preference. The purpose of the present study, therefore, was to quantify the matching of dynamic proprioceptive target arm movements under different matching conditions. Using torque motor-driven manipulanda, 11 blindfolded, right-handed adults experienced triangular velocity profiles at 2 different peak speeds (30 • /s or 60 • /s) with the preferred and non-preferred elbow. Subjects then matched the dynamics of these target movements with either the same (ipsilateral remembered) or opposite (contralateral remembered) elbow. Matching errors were generally larger for the more difficult, contralateral remembered versus ipsilateral remembered task, and for greater target speed conditions. One arm difference was found indicating a non-preferred arm advantage for the matching of average target acceleration in the ipsilateral remembered condition. Overall, these results demonstrate that dynamic proprioceptive feedback-matching performance is influenced by several factors including peak speed, task difficulty and limb preference.
Joint Specificity and Lateralization of Upper Limb Proprioceptive Perception
Perceptual and Motor Skills
Proprioception is the sense of position and movement of body segments. The widespread distribution of proprioceptors in human anatomy raises questions about proprioceptive uniformity across different body parts. For the upper limbs, previous research, using mostly active and/or contralateral matching tasks, has suggested better proprioception of the non-preferred arm, and at the elbow rather than the wrist. Here we assessed proprioceptive perception through an ipsilateral passive matching task by comparing the elbow and wrist joints of the preferred and non-preferred arms. We hypothesized that upper limb proprioception would be better at the elbow of the non-preferred arm. We found signed errors to be less variable at the non-preferred elbow than at the preferred elbow and both wrists. Signed errors at the elbow were also more stable than at the wrist. Across individuals, signed errors at the preferred and non-preferred elbows were correlated. Also, variable signed errors at the pre...
Proprioceptive target matching asymmetries in left-handed individuals
Experimental brain research, 2009
In right-handers, the ability to reproduce proprioceptive targets has been shown to be asymmetric, favoring the non-preferred left arm. The present study sought to determine whether a similar arm/hemisphere asymmetry exists for left-handers. Ten strong left-handed adults used the left or right arm to perform proprioceptive target matching tasks that varied in processing demands (i.e., need for memory, interhemispheric transfer) and target amplitude (20, 40°). Similar to right-handers, left-handed individuals had smaller total errors when matching with the nonpreferred arm. This asymmetry was greatest in conditions with increased processing demands and larger amplitude targets. These results provide the Wrst evidence to date of right arm/left hemisphere dominance for proprioceptive target matching in left-handers that is the "mirror image" of right-handers.
Task-dependent asymmetries in the utilization of proprioceptive feedback for goal-directed movement
Experimental Brain Research, 2007
Whereas the majority of studies regarding upper limb asymmetries in motor performance have focused on preferred arm dominance for producing motor output, studies exploring the role of sensory feedback have suggested that the preferred and nonpreferred arms are specialized for different aspects of movement. A recent study by found evidence of a non-preferred left arm (and presumably right hemisphere) proprioceptive dominance for a target matching task that required subjects to both memorize and transfer across hemispheres proprioceptive target information. This paradigm contrasted previous studies of proprioceptive matching asymmetry that explored only memory-based matching and produced equivocal results. The purpose of the present study, therefore, was to examine task-dependent asymmetries in proprioceptive matching performance, including differences related to active versus passive presentation of the matching target. It was found that the non-preferred left arm of right handers matched target elbow angles more accurately than the preferred arm, but only in the matching condition that required both memory and interhemispheric transfer. Taskdependent asymmetries were not affected by the mode of target presentation and assessment of matching kinematics revealed differences in strategy for both the speed and smoothness of targeted movements. Taken together, these results suggest that the non-preferred arm/hemisphere system is specialized for the processing of movement-related proprioceptive feedback.
Experimental Brain Research, 2009
Asymmetries in upper limb position sense have been explained in the context of a left limb advantage derived from differences in hemispheric specialization in the processing of kinesthetic information. However, it is not clearly understood how the comparison of perceptual information associated with passive limb displacement and the corresponding matching movement resulting from the execution of a motor command contributes to these differences. In the present study, upper limb position sense was investigated in 12 right-hand-dominant young adults performing wrist position matching tasks which varied in terms of interhemispheric transfer, memory retrieval and whether the reference position was provided by the same or opposite limb. Right and left hand absolute matching errors were similar when the reference and matching positions were produced by the same hand but were 36% greater when matching the reference position with the opposite hand. When examining the constant errors generated from matching movements made with the same hand that provided the reference, the right and left hand matching errors (&3°) were similar. However, when matching with the opposite limb, a large overshoot (P \ 0.05) characterized the error when the right hand matched the left hand reference while a large undershoot (P \ 0.05) characterized the error when the left hand matched the right hand reference. The overshoot and undershoot were of similar magnitude (&4°). Although asymmetries in the central processing of proprioceptive information such as interhemispheric transfer may exist, the present study suggests that asymmetries in position sense predominantly result from a difference in the ''gain of the respective proprioceptive sensory-motor loops''. This new hypothesis is strongly supported by a dual-linear model representing the right and left hand sensory-motor systems as well as morphological and physiological data.
Manual Asymmetries in Reaching Movement Control. II: Study of Left-Handers
Cortex, 2001
The purpose of the present study was to compare the asymmetry and transfer in 3 pointing movements with increasing spatial requirements. The triggering signal was one of four visual targets appearing on the right or left of a central fixation point (FP). The first task consisted in simply removing the arm from the starting platform; the second was a pointing movement towards the FP, and the third was a classical pointing task towards one of the four lateral targets. 20 right-handers (Rhrs) and 20 left-handers (Lhrs) participated in this experiment. In the classical pointing task (task 3), the reaction times were shorter in the Rhrs using their left hand. No such hand-related difference was observed in the Lhrs. No hand asymmetry was observed in the other tasks. In addition, the responses were faster in the uncrossed than in the crossed conditions, in task 3 only. It was concluded that in pointing tasks, both the hemispheric asymmetry and the interhemispheric transfer depend on the spatial requirements of the movement.