Comparison of Sympathetic Skin Response (SSR) between Electrical and Acoustic Stimuli in a Healthy Pediatric Population

Abstract

Data in the literature report that latency and morphology in the cutaneous sympathetic skin response (SSR) do not change according to the type of stimulus delivered, unlike the amplitude which shows greater values in relation to the intensity of the physical impact caused in patient. Since the acoustic stimulus represents a method better tolerated by the pediatric patient, the aim of this study is to evaluate the presence or absence of significant differences in SSR between electrical and acoustic stimuli. The SSR was performed for each child of 18 recruited in this study, deriving from the palm of the hand and the sole of the foot and initially delivering an electrical stimulus at the level of the median nerve at the wrist. Two acoustic stimuli were subsequently delivered with the aid of audiometric headphones. Our results show no significant differences for the amplitude values obtained (p values > 0.05). For the latency there was a statistically significant difference (p-value = 0.001) for the left hand, subsequently not confirmed by the comparison performed between the two sides (p-values = 0.28 and 0.56). If these preliminary data are confirmed by a larger sample, the acoustic stimulus could be introduced in a standardized protocol for performing SSR in pediatric patients.

Assessment of Cutaneous Parameters and Sympathetic Skin Response as a Non-Invasive Complementary Diagnostic Tool in Psoriasis

“…[ 1 ] A change in skin electrical potential caused by the activation of sudomotor unmyelinated sympathetic efferent fibers, which may occur spontaneously or reflexively in response to a variety of internally or externally applied physiological or psychological stimuli, is recorded as SSR. [ 3 ] Changes in skin impedance[ 4 ] owing to ion transport across skin sweat gland cell membranes, are indicative of this possible response. [ 5 ] Changes in SSR were associated with skin hydration or moisture content.…”

A Preliminary Study on Sympathetic Skin Response in Acute Ischemic Cerebrovascular Disease

“…The amplitude is mostly considered to represent the number of neurons activated by the stimulation or the density of sweat glands with local secretory activities. 5 It is highly variable and adaptive, so the change in amplitude alone has little significance. Latency refers to the time course of the whole conductive pathways from stimulation to sweating of sweat glands, including afferent, central, and efferent parts.…”

“…Latency refers to the time course of the whole conductive pathways from stimulation to sweating of sweat glands, including afferent, central, and efferent parts. Latency is mainly correlated to the form of stimulation 5 , 6 and is relatively stable under the same stimulation, mainly reflecting the abnormalities in efferent and central parts. 7 We all know that the autonomic nervous system (ANS), mainly the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, regulates the functions of smooth muscles, myocardia, and glands under the action of central nervous system, and widely participates in the physiological activities of multiple tissues and organs such as circulatory, respiratory, urinary, and reproductive activities, as well as in the systemic metabolism.…”