Novel assessment of cortical response to somatosensory stimuli in children with hemiparetic cerebral palsy.

The brain's response to somatosensory stimuli is essential to experience-driven learning in children. It was hypothesized that advances in event-related potential technology could quantify the response to touch in somatosensory cortices and characterize the responses of hemiparetic children. In this prospective study of 8 children (5-8 years old) with hemiparetic cerebral palsy, both event-related potential responses to sham or air puff trials and standard functional assessments were used. Event-related potential technology consistently measured signals reflecting activity in the primary and secondary somatosensory cortices as well as complex cognitive processing of touch. Participants showed typical early responses but less efficient perceptual processes. Significant differences between affected and unaffected extremities correlated with sensorimotor testing, stereognosis, and 2-point discrimination (r > 0.800 and P = .001 for all). For the first time, a novel event-related potential paradigm shows that hemiparetic children have slower and less efficient tactile cortical perception in their affected extremities.