Temperature of skeletal muscle in cerebral hemiplegia and paralysis agitans.

external work.1 Disturbances of skeletal muscle innervation have been found by electromyographic studies in patients with clinical signs of a pyramidal tract lesion or paralysis agitans. The abnormal innervation patterns in these two clinical states may be associated with alterations in temperature of skeletal muscle. This problem has been investigated in a group of subjects without neuromuscular abnormality and patients with chronic unilateral cerebral hemiplegia or paralysis agitans syndrome. TECHNIC Temperature measurements were made in 57 experiments on 52 subjects, 18 of whom served as normal controls. The normal controls were ward patients at the Neurological Institute who showed no evidence of neuromuscular abnormality of the upper extremities by history, clinical examination and laboratory tests. Pertinent data on the subjects in the disease groups are given in tables 1 and 2. Standard thermoelectric technic was used for temperature measurements; sensitivity of the circuit allowed a relative precision of temperature measurement of ± 0.01 degree (C). Needle thermocouples of 40 gage (B. and S.) copper and constantan wire were used in standard 26 gage polished stainless steel tubing. All subjects were in the basal state, nude except for a small sheet over the trunk and reclining prone in an ordinary hospital bed during the experiments. Experiments were begun about 8:00 a.m. and usually lasted three to five hours. Subjects received no medication for at least forty-eight hours prior to the experimental determinations. Most of the temperature determinations were made in the biceps brachii muscle of both sides, the arms being supported free of contact with the bed ; the needles were introduced horizontally into the medial aspect of each biceps muscle at two or three points (table 4). Rectal temperatures were measured thermoSubmitted in partial fulfilment of requirements for the degree of Doctor of