EMG Testing

Getting to the root of neurological conditions

Because of the invaluable insights they can deliver, every neurological examination for evaluation of neuromuscular disorders should include electrodiagnostic testing – specifically, electromyography (EMG) and nerve conduction studies.

These tests provide a fast and accurate diagnosis of nerve compression, nerve and nerve root injury, and other neurological conditions ranging from myopathy to radiculopathy. Electromyographic recording and evaluation of the electrical potentials of muscles, both at rest and while contracting, reveal much about motor unit composition, muscle-fiber count per motor unit, and other factors affecting motor unit potentials.

Swift and trusted EMG testing

The best means of acquiring these insights is intramuscular EMG. However, the need to insert a needle electrode through the skin makes intramuscular EMG uncomfortable for some patients. For those individuals, there is an alternative called surface EMG, which provides information without skin penetration.

EMG testing in one form or another is appropriate for and generally well tolerated by adults and also children over the age of 8.

Noninvasive nerve conduction studies

Nerve conduction studies detect pathology-induced changes in latencies, motor and/or sensory potentials amplitudes, or slowing of conduction velocities. If, for example, the damage had occurred to the myelin, a nerve conduction study would very likely be able to provide compelling evidence of that.

EMG Testing Services in Bronx, NY

These entirely noninvasive studies consist of four parts. The first is a study of motor responsiveness, which is performed by electrically stimulating a peripheral nerve and then recording the reaction at a muscle supplied by that same nerve. The second part is an evaluation of sensory performance, again involving electrical stimulation of a peripheral nerve, but this time recording the response at the finger or some other sensory portion of the tested nerve. The third element is an F-wave study, wherein a motor nerve is stimulated to gauge action potentials. The fourth part is a study that records H-reflex electrical discharge.