The Effect of an Auxiliary Stimulation on Motor Function Restoration by FES

Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) is a technology to generate neural activity in an artificial way to activate muscles. However, as reported by some researchers, the human responses to FES are likely to be affected by several factors, such as spasticity, muscle fatigue, nerve habituation and so forth. Consequently, the function restoration by FES is neither durable, nor stable. In order to realize long-term and stable FES assistance, this study investigated whether and why an Auxiliary Stimulation (AS) to the Gastrocnemius, with current frequency ranged from 2000 to 6000 Hz, could alleviate the symptom of spasticity and muscle fatigue caused by the stimulation to the Tibialis Anterior. We have developed a portable auxiliary stimulator, and performed experiments to verify its effectiveness. The results showed that our approach enabled comparatively stable and durable function restoration assistance. Moreover, for understanding underlying neuromuscular processes elicited by the AS and its qualitative nature, this study also measured the Hoffmann-reflex (H-reflex) in soleus muscle before and after the AS, to interpret the effect of the Auxiliary Stimulation.