Excitability of spinal neural function during mental rotation of hands: a study of the difference in reaction time

Abstract

In this study, F-wave analysis was used to examine whether differences in the reaction times of mental rotation (MR) of the hands affects the excitability of spinal neurons during MR of hands. The subjects were eleven healthy people in their 20s. They were divided into fast and slow groups according to the reaction times of MR of their hands. The subjects sat on a chair, and F waves of the right thenar eminence were recorded after stimulation of the right median nerve during MR of letters and during MR of hands. In the slow group, the amplitude ratio of F/M and the persistence were significantly higher during MR of hands than during MR of letters; however, the fast group, they showed no significant changes. The results seem to indicate that individual differences in motor imagery ability can affect the excitability of spinal neurons during motor imagery.