Assessment of Brainstem Function with Auricular Branch of Vagus Nerve Stimulation in Parkinson's Disease

Overview

Journal PLoS One

Specialties General Medicine
Science

Date 2015 Apr 8

PMID 25849807

Citations 16

Authors

David Weise

Melanie Adamidis

Fabio Pizzolato

Jost-Julian Rumpf

Christopher Fricke

Joseph Classen

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: The efferent dorsal motor nucleus of the vagal nuclei complex may degenerate early in the course of Parkinson's disease (PD), while efferent nucleus ambiguous, the principal source of parasympathetic vagal neurons innervating the heart, and afferent somatosensory nuclei remain intact.

Objective: To obtain neurophysiological evidence related to this pattern, we tested processing of afferent sensory information transmitted via the auricular branch of the vagus nerve (ABVN) which is known to be connected to autonomic regulation of cardiac rhythm.

Methods: In this cross-sectional observational study, we recorded (i) somatosensory evoked potentials (ABVN-SEP) and (ii) cutaneo-cardioautonomic response elicited by stimulation of the ABVN (modulation of heart-rate variability (HRV index; low frequency power, ln(LF), high frequency power, ln(HF); ln(LF/HF) ratio)) in 50 PD patients and 50 age and sex matched healthy controls. Additionally, auditory evoked potentials and trigeminal nerve SEP were assessed.

Results: Neither ABVN-SEP nor any of the other functional brainstem parameters differed between patients and controls. Although HRV index was decreased in PD patients, modulation of ln(LF/HF) by ABVN-stimulation, likely indicating cardiac parasympathetic activation, did not differ between both groups.

Conclusions: Findings do not point to prominent dysfunction of processing afferent information from ABVN and its connected parasympathetic cardiac pathway in PD. They are consistent with the known pattern of degeneration of the vagal nuclei complex of the brainstem.

Citing Articles

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Ear your heart: transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation on heart rate variability in healthy young participants.

Forte G, Favieri F, Leemhuis E, De Martino M, Giannini A, De Gennaro L PeerJ. 2022; 10:e14447.

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