Optimized Sensorimotor Activation Enhances the Control of Goal‐Directed Aiming Mediated by Real‐Time Visuomotor Transformations

Improving motor abilities may result from sensory-motor stimulations involving repetitive mechanical vibratory applications focused on muscles or tendons. These stimulations activate the proprioceptive pathway, critical for effective motion coordination. Optimized focal muscle vibration (o-fmv) paradigms can enhance motor control of goal-directed movements, potentially influencing the proprioceptive contribution needed for visual-proprioceptive integration during planning and execution stages of motion. We examined whether o-fmv affects goal-directed movements when visual information is available in real time or when it needs to be memorized. We applied the o-fmv to the shoulder muscles in healthy participants to affect their proprioception. Then, we assessed immediate and 1-week-later effects on upper limb aiming toward visual targets. Movements were prepared with vision and executed either with real-time or memorized visual information. O-fmv improved mean speed, smoothness, and accuracy primarily when movements were performed with real-time visual information. These improvements began immediately and continued to increase after 1 week. Minimal effects were observed when movements relied on memorized visual information. Therefore, o-fmv produces lasting improvements in motor control of goal-directed movements supported by real-time visual information. Our findings suggest that o-fmv may enhance the brain's processing of proprioceptive information used during motion planning and execution, potentially leading to long-term changes. These effects might involve stream pathways that coordinate goal-directed actions by integrating real-time visual information with proprioceptive inputs.