Biomechanical analysis of experimental spinal cord injury treated with photobiomodulation

Spinal cord injury (SCI) is a terrible condition that can affect humans. It is characterized by the interruption of the neurological signal, affecting sensorimotor functions, with social and psychological losses and high treatment costs. There is still no cure for SCI, encouraging research for new therapeu- tic approaches. In this context, Photobiomodulation (PBM) has shown promising results regarding the inflammatory, pain, im- munological, and antifibrotic response, favoring the healing process in several tissues. Objective: To evaluate the motor function in rats treated with PBM after SCI by hemisection us- ing quantitative movement analysis techniques. Methodology: 15 male rats were distributed in three groups: Control (C), In- jury (I), and Photobiomodulation (PBM, continuous wave, 780nm). Groups I and PBM were submitted to SCI between T9/T10, by hemisection of the spinal cord. The Sciatic Func- tional Index (SFI) and average speed were evaluated by kine- matic analysis of the gait of these animals for 28 days, with 7- day intervals. Results: The PBM group showed a significant in- crease in the average speed at 7, 14, and 21 experimental day times evaluated and improvement in SFI. Conclusion: The kin- ematic and thesciatic functional index analysis are reliable eval- uating tools for motor function in rats treated with PBM after SCI, showing increased gait speed and range of motion im- provement on the 14th and 21st-day post-SCI.