Intersegmental synchronization of spontaneous cord dorsum potentials as a clinical parameter to evaluate changes in neuronal connectivity produced by peripheral nerve and spinal cord damage

Abstract

We describe here an automatic selection method to retrieve spontaneous cord dorsum potentials from the spinal cord in the anesthetized cat. Previous studies have indicated that some of these potentials appear synchronized in several spinal segments and are generated by the activation of specific sets of dorsal horn neurons. Since their synchronization is affected in a characteristic manner by acute peripheral nerve and spinal lesions, as well as during capsaicin-induced skin inflammation, they can be used to describe the patterns of functional interconnectivity between specific sets of dorsal horn neurons, which makes them of potential clinical interest.