Physiotherapist assisted wrist movement protocol for EEG-based corticokinematic coherence assessment

This study aimed to assess the feasibility of a physiotherapist-assisted wrist-movement protocol to measure corticokinematic coherence (CKC) using electroencephalography (EEG) in healthy adults. The broader goal is to evaluate CKC's potential as a proprioceptive assessment tool in clinical settings. Thirty-two healthy young adults participated in a hand movement task, in which a physiotherapist periodically moved their hand by relying on a "visual metronome". We measured CKC by co-recording EEG and hand acceleration data. CKC was observed at the fundamental movement frequency and its first harmonic, mainly at electrodes above the primary sensorimotor area contralateral to the moved hand. The use of a visual metronome helped to maintain the regularity of the movement, but slight between-hand differences in movement regularity were nonetheless present. The results support the feasibility of using a physiotherapist-assisted, wrist-movement-based EEG protocol to assess CKC. This method holds promise for evaluating proprioceptive function in clinical populations, as it enables tailoring the movement to individual needs and real-time adaptation to physiological variability in a natural physiotherapist-patient interaction without requiring a mechanical actuator. The findings lay the groundwork for future applications in stroke rehabilitation and other neurological contexts.