MossRehab’s Motor Control Analysis Laboratory

 Motor control analysis is a valuable tool in identifying specific muscles producing limb dysfunction in central nervous system (CNS) injuries and disorders.

 The Motor Control Analysis Laboratory (MCAL) at MossRehab puts medicine in motion to enhance the care of patients with CNS disorders or brain injuries. One of the few of its kind, the sophisticated lab probes patients’ abilities to use their upper limbs by evaluating motor control and tone, range of motion and sensation.

Diagnostic and Treatment Services

According to Nathaniel Mayer, MD, Director of MCAL at MossRehab, the laboratory can diagnose and treat upper limb dysfunction. As a diagnostic tool, “the laboratory analyzes movement patterns and measures electromyographic (EMG) activity of agonists and antagonists muscles around joints.”

Under the watchful eye of specially trained physicians and therapists, diagnostic studies spot muscles that might respond to corrective surgery or non-surgical treatments including drug therapy.  MCAL is also a treatment tool targeting muscle over activity with chemodenervation agents, such as with botulinum toxin, or neurolytic agents, such as phenol. Dr. Mayer stresses that clinicians may choose to refer their patients to MossRehab for treatment, or they may simply use MCAL for evaluation and recommendation.

At the Frontier of Research

Using start-of-the-art technology, Motor Control Analysis Laboratory is pushing the frontiers of research into the complex phenomenology of muscle over-activity following brain injury. Dr. Mayer points to a recent study at MCAL showing that low-dose, high-volume strategies for botulinum toxin injection may reduce cost and total body dose in patients with upper motor neturon syndrome.¹  This type of research, says Dr. Mayer, generates new knowledge and hones the Laboratory’s expertise in diagnosis and treatment.

Patients and Clinicians Benefit from MCAL

Located within a large rehabilitation hospital, MCAL is a significant resource for physicians and physical therapists. “We are a referral station for complex musculoskeletal consequences of general neurological injury,” explains Dr. Mayer. The Motor Control Lab also yields useful information for neuro-orthopedic surgeons who specialize in the orthopedic consequences of neurological disease.

For patients, the diagnostic and therapeutic expertise at the Motor Control Lab enhances quality of life by reducing or eliminating symptoms and improving self-care activities (e.g., grooming and washing, skin breakdown). In addition, MCAL helps improve active function in patients with greater neurologic recovery. Importantly, says Dr. Mayer, therapies available through MCAL also send a powerful message to patients that “they don’t have to tolerate deformity after central nervous system injury. We have ways of helping them. It all ties into quality of life.”

Looking Forward

As the New Year approaches, the Motor Control Analysis Laboratory at MossRehab is expanding diagnostic and treatment services for patients with upper limb dysfunction due to CNS injuries or disorders. MCAL is also playing a key role in shaping future treatment approaches. By example, Dr. Mayer proudly points to MCAL’s role in advancing the use of flexible plastic orthoses and braces.

References

Mayer NH, Whyte J, Wannstedt G, Ellis CA. Comparative impact of 2 botulinum toxin injection techniques for elbow flexor hypertonia. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2008;89:982-7