Background. Resting state functional connectivity (RSFC) is a developmental priority for stroke recovery. Objective. To determine whether (1) RSFC differs between stroke survivors based on integrity of descending motor pathways; (2) RSFC is associated with upper-limb behavior in chronic stroke; and (3) the relationship between interhemispheric RSFC and upper-limb behavior differs based on descending motor pathway integrity. Methods. A total of 36 people with stroke (aged 64.4 ± 11.1 years, time since stroke 4.0 ± 2.8 years) and 25 healthy adults (aged 67.3 ± 6.7 years) participated in this study. RSFC was estimated from electroencephalography (EEG) recordings. Integrity of descending motor pathways was ascertained using transcranial magnetic stimulation to determine motor-evoked potential (MEP) status and magnetic resonance imaging to determine lesion overlap and fractional anisotropy of the corticospinal tract (CST). For stroke participants, upper-limb motor behavior was assessed using the Fugl-Meyer test, Action Research Arm Test and grip strength. Results. β-Frequency interhemispheric sensorimotor RSFC was greater for MEP+ stroke participants compared with MEP− (P = .020). There was a significant positive correlation between β RSFC and upper-limb behavior (P = .004) that appeared to be primarily driven by the MEP+ group. A hierarchical regression identified that the addition of β RSFC to measures of CST integrity explained greater variance in upper-limb behavior (R2 change = 0.13; P = .01). Conclusions. This study provides insight to understand the role of EEG-based measures of interhemispheric network activity in chronic stroke. Resting state interhemispheric connectivity was positively associated with upper-limb behavior for stroke survivors where residual integrity of descending motor pathways was maintained.

中文翻译：

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静息状态功能连接与慢性中风中的运动通路完整性和上肢行为相关

背景。静息状态功能连接 (RSFC) 是中风恢复的发展重点。目标。确定 (1) 基于下行运动通路的完整性，中风幸存者的 RSFC 是否不同；(2) RSFC与慢性脑卒中的上肢行为有关；(3) 半球间 RSFC 和上肢行为之间的关系因下行运动通路的完整性而异。方法。共有 36 名卒中患者（年龄 64.4 ± 11.1 岁，卒中后时间 4.0 ± 2.8 年）和 25 名健康成人（年龄 67.3 ± 6.7 岁）参与了这项研究。RSFC 是根据脑电图 (EEG) 记录估计的。使用经颅磁刺激确定运动诱发电位 (MEP) 状态和磁共振成像以确定病变重叠和皮质脊髓束 (CST) 的各向异性分数，以确定下行运动通路的完整性。对于中风参与者，使用 Fugl-Meyer 测试、动作研究手臂测试和握力评估上肢运动行为。结果。与 MEP- 相比，MEP+ 中风参与者的 β 频率半球间感觉运动 RSFC 更大（P = .020）。β RSFC 与上肢行为之间存在显着的正相关 (P = .004)，这似乎主要由 MEP+ 组驱动。分层回归确定，将 β RSFC 添加到 CST 完整性的测量解释了上肢行为的更大差异（R2 变化 = 0.13；P = .01）。结论。这项研究为理解基于脑电图的半球间网络活动测量在慢性中风中的作用提供了见解。静息状态的半球间连通性与中风幸存者的上肢行为呈正相关，其中下行运动通路的残余完整性得以保持。