Robotic evaluation of sensorimotor and cognitive function following exposure to subconcussive impacts

Subconcussive impacts, caused by direct or indirect head trauma without immediate symptoms, are increasingly recognized as a contributor to long-term neurological sequelae Individuals repeatedly exposed to such impacts, including military personnel and contact sport athletes, often report symptoms as their careers progress. However, monitoring neurological changes related to subconcussive impacts is challenging because few objective measures are currently available. Robotic technology, such as the Kinarm device, presents an opportunity to objectively quantify sensorimotor and cognitive function. Here, military snipers operating 0.50-caliber long-range rifles completed a visually guided reaching (VGR) and reverse visually guided reaching (RVGR) task using Kinarm. Assessments were completed before (n = 18) and after (n = 7) a one-day shooting intervention. While overall performance in snipers did not significantly differ from controls (n = 53) at either time point, snipers made more direction errors than controls during the initial VGR assessment. This difference may relate to an accumulation of subconcussive impacts incurred throughout military service. Additionally, both groups improved between assessments, primarily driven by a training effect observed in the first few trials. Further analysis of individual trials revealed that snipers displayed poorer feedback adjustment compared to controls. However, snipers were consistently faster, suggesting that their specialized skill set may compensate for exposure to subconcussive impacts. Overall, these findings show that Kinarm may be useful in identifying markers of exposure and recovery in traumatic brain injury, potentially in conjunction with neuroimaging to link changes in the brain with a functional outcome.

Department dc:contributor.department

Neuroscience Studies

Year dc:date.issued

2024

Author dc:creator

• Hambly, Cameron Charles

Advisor dc:contributor.supervisor

• Cook, Douglas James

• Subconcussive impacts
• Kinarm
• Motor learning
• Cognitive control

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

https://hdl.handle.net/1974/34184

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:queensu.scholaris.ca:1974/34184