Kinematic and sensory-motor analysis of the effects of treatments with photobiomodulation in rats with experimentally induced spinal injury.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the kinematic and sensorimotor parameters after application of photobiomodulation (PBM) in rats with experimentally induced spinal cord injuries (SCI). The animals were randomly divided into 3 experimental groups containing 5 animals each and respecting the following arrangement: C (control, simulation of surgical procedures); I (injury, induction of SCI) and PBM (photobiomodulation, SCI + application of photobiomodulation therapy). All animals underwent movement tests after 3, 7, 10 and 14 days, respectively, after the surgical procedure, and the following movement parameters were evaluated: mean velocity (MV), ground reaction force (GRF) and sciatic functional index (SFI) using integrated equipment capable of digitally collecting the proposed data. The mean results of the MV data obtained by groups C, I and PBM were compared and a statistically significant difference was found, being: C x I (p = 0.001) and I x PBM (p = 0.002), respectively. Considering the SFI data obtained by groups C, I and PBM, a statistically significant difference was observed when comparing C x I (p = 0.011). The mean results of the GRF data obtained by groups C, I and PBM were compared and the results showed a statistically significant difference in C x I (p = 0.001), C x PBM (p = 0.026) and I x PBM (p = 0.002), respectively. Therefore, there was an improvement in motor function between the 7th and 14th day after SCI, represented by the increase in speed and better GRF distribution in the PBM group.