PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Lee W. Tempel
AU  - Joel S. Perlmutter
TI  - Abnormal cortical responses in patients with writer's cramp
AID  - 10.1212/WNL.43.11.2252
DP  - 1993 Nov 01
TA  - Neurology
PG  - 2252--2252
VI  - 43
IP  - 11
4099  - http://n.neurology.org/content/43/11/2252.short
4100  - http://n.neurology.org/content/43/11/2252.full
SO  - Neurology1993 Nov 01; 43
AB  - We evaluated sensorimotor processing in patients with writer's cramp using PET and H2 15O blood flow scans. The study included six right-handed patients with unilateral writer's cramp and eight right-handed normals. Subjects had blood flow scans at rest and during vibration of either the “affected” or “unaffected” hand. Vibration produced a consistent peak response in primary sensorimotor area (PSA) and supplementary motor area (SMA), both contralateral to the vibrated hand. Both responses were significantly reduced approximately 25% in patients with writer's cramp (PSA, p = 0.002; SMA, p = 0.02) whether vibrating the affected or unaffected hand. This indicates that patients with unilateral writer's cramp have bilateral brain dysfunction. These data provide objective evidence of abnormal central sensorimotor processing in writer's cramp.