Tremor-frequency (3-6 Hz) activity in the sensorimotor arm representation of the internal segment of the globus pallidus in patients with Parkinson's disease

Neurons in the internal segment of the globus pallidus (GPi) oscillate at approximately the frequency of parkinsonian tremor. However, the correlation of that activity with tremor has not previously been studied. We now describe the relationship between single neuron activity in the arm sensorimotor portion of GPi and upper extremity tremor in patients with Parkinson's disease. There was a significant concentration of power in the tremor-frequency range (3-6 Hz) for 11/44 GPi neurons. However, pallidal tremor-frequency activity correlated significantly with electromyogram (EMG) activity during tremor for only a single GPi neuron. These data are most consistent with the hypothesis that the output of neurons in GPi is transformed in thalamus by a non-linear mechanism, before transmission via the cortex to the spinal motorneurons that drive movement. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.