Does endogenous progesterone promote recovery of chronic sensorimotor deficits following contusion to the forelimb representation of the sensorimotor cortex?

We studied sensorimotor recovery in male, normal-cycling and pseudopregnant female rats following unilateral FL-SMC contusions. Forelimb use (push off before a rear, support against the walls, and landing after a rear) and the foot fault test (foot misplacements during locomotion on an elevated grid) were analyzed from videotapes taken before surgery, and then again on post-surgical days 2 and 36. High endogenous progesterone levels in females at the time of injury did not affect recovery as there were no differences between males, pseudopregnant females and normal-cycling female rats on these behaviors. None of the brain-injured rats recovered symmetrical forelimb use between 2 and 36 days after injury ( P>0.05) and they also showed foot misplacements ( P>0.05) in the foot fault test. Male and female rats with contusions had fewer mean foot misplacements on day 36 than 2 days after injury ( P