This study seeks to validate the use of a psychophysical technique in evaluating. muscular sensations, especially to painful stimuli. It will then be utilised to investigate the effect on muscular sensory discrimination of various therapeutic interventions.
The approach is that of a psychophysical investigation in which brief, mildly painful electric currents are presented to muscles either in the forearm or lower limb depending on the area under Jn one procedure, subjects will be asked to rate their confidence that the larger of two currents was presented; in another, they will be asked to judge the painfulness of the stimulus. A third procedure will ask for these judgements at various intervals after a therapeutic intervention (joint manipulation). Because of the variability in judgements of this nature, many hundreds, of judgements will be required from each subject, but the procedure will be automated, and the stimuli will be brief, so the time required to make the judgments will be relatively short.
The electrical stimulus will be delivered by a battery-powered optically isolated The electrical current is a brief pulse presented through sterilised needle electrodes inserted into the belly of the muscle under investigation. Intramuscular needles have been previously used in the department on human subjects in the course of investigating the effects of electroacupuncture.
Subjects will make their judgements by entering a number on a computer. keyboard. An easily read switch on the battery-powered source will enable them to switch off the current and terminate the experiment at any time. An experimental session will comprise several blocks of stimulus presentations. A block of 100 stimuli will take about five minutes to complete.
Grant Value: $1200
Chief Investigator: Dr Bernadette Murphy – University of Auckland
Status: Complete
Outcomes:
No outcomes sourced at this time.