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Review
. 2021 May 30;63(1):22.
doi: 10.1186/s13028-021-00585-z.

Nervous system modulation through electrical stimulation in companion animals

Ângela Martins  1   2 , Débora Gouveia  3 , Ana Cardoso  3 , Óscar Gamboa  4 , Darryl Millis  5 , António Ferreira  4
Affiliations
Review

Nervous system modulation through electrical stimulation in companion animals

Ângela Martins et al. Acta Vet Scand. .

Erratum in

Abstract

Domestic animals with severe spontaneous spinal cord injury (SCI), including dogs and cats that are deep pain perception negative (DPP-), can benefit from specific evaluations involving neurorehabilitation integrative protocols. In human medicine, patients without deep pain sensation, classified as grade A on the American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) impairment scale, can recover after multidisciplinary approaches that include rehabilitation modalities, such as functional electrical stimulation (FES), transcutaneous electrical spinal cord stimulation (TESCS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (TDCS). This review intends to explore the history, biophysics, neurophysiology, neuroanatomy and the parameters of FES, TESCS, and TDCS, as safe and noninvasive rehabilitation modalities applied in the veterinary field. Additional studies need to be conducted in clinical settings to successfully implement these guidelines in dogs and cats.

Keywords: Cat; Dog; Electrostimulation; Functionality; Neurorehabilitation modalities; Spinal cord.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Functional electrical study—Application of segmental FES modality on a dog
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
FES protocol to promote new connections—Application of the anode near the motor point region
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Transcutaneous electrical spinal cord stimulation—Application of L2-L3 TESCS modality on a dog
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Transcutaneous electrical spinal cord stimulation—Application of L2-L3 TESCS, according to the vertebral column geometric anatomy
Fig. 5
Fig. 5
Application of TDCS modality on a dog—Anode localization near the brainstem region
Fig. 6
Fig. 6
Transcranial direct current stimulation—TDCS protocol based on a 1 mA current for 20 min on a dog
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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