7. Proprioceptive evoked potentials (PEP) in man: Cerebral responses of changing weight loads on the hand

We studied cerebral proprioceptive evoked potentials (PEP) in 10 subjects elicited by a change in weight load of 400 to 480 g on the right hand. The cortical activation of the PEP was triphasic C3 /P70, N130, P190, and biphasic Fz/N70, N150 components. Statistical analyses indicated significant contralateral activation, C3 vs C4 (P70, t = 4.34, p <. 002; N130, t = 3.65, p <. 005; P190, t = 3.10, p <. 02), and significantly larger frontal than parietal activation, Fz vs Pz (N70, t = 8.89, p <. 001; N150, t = 5.45, p <. 001). The deflections of the PEP resemble the suggested reafferent activity in the movement-related potential and the EP seen when inducing a long-latency stretch reflex, making it likely to be attributable to muscle afferent activity. PEP could be used in the investigation of sensory-motor integration and perception.