HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Free Full Text (PDF) Free All Versions of this Article: 96/5/1723    most recent 00914.2003v1 Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Web of Science (11) Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Duiverman, M. L. Articles by Wijkstra, P. J. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Duiverman, M. L. Articles by Wijkstra, P. J.

Reproducibility and responsiveness of a noninvasive EMG technique of the respiratory muscles in COPD patients and in healthy subjects

¹Department of Pulmonary Diseases/Home Mechanical Ventilation, University Hospital Groningen, 9700 RB Groningen; ²Department of Neurology and Medical Physiology, University of Groningen, 9700 AB Groningen; and ³Emma Children's Hospital, Academic Medical Center, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands

Submitted 27 August 2003 ; accepted in final form 27 November 2003

In the present study, we assessed the reproducibility and responsiveness of transcutaneous electromyography (EMG) of the respiratory muscles in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and healthy subjects during breathing against an inspiratory load. In seven healthy subjects and seven COPD patients, EMG signals of the frontal and dorsal diaphragm, intercostal muscles, abdominal muscles, and scalene muscles were derived on 2 different days, both during breathing at rest and during breathing through an inspiratory threshold device of 7, 14, and 21 cmH₂O. For analysis, we used the logarithm of the ratio of the inspiratory activity during the subsequent loads and the activity at baseline [log EMG activity ratio (EMGAR)]. Reproducibility of the EMG was assessed by comparing the log EMGAR values measured at test days 1 and 2 in both groups. Responsiveness (sensitivity to change) of the EMG was assessed by comparing the log EMGAR values of the COPD patients to those of the healthy subjects at each load. During days 1 and 2, log EMGAR values of the diaphragm and the intercostal muscles correlated significantly. For the scalene muscles, significant correlations were found for the COPD patients. Although inspiratory muscle activity increased significantly during the subsequent loads in all participants, the COPD patients displayed a significantly greater increase in intercostal and left scalene muscle activity compared with the healthy subjects. In conclusion, the present study showed that the EMG technique is a reproducible and sensitive technique to assess breathing patterns in COPD patients and healthy subjects.

respiratory muscle activity; breathing patterns; electromyography

This article has been cited by other articles:

				J Steier, C J Jolley, J Seymour, M Roughton, M I Polkey, and J Moxham Neural respiratory drive in obesity Thorax, August 1, 2009; 64(8): 719 - 725. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S Dorman, C Jolley, A Abernethy, D Currow, M Johnson, M Farquhar, G Griffiths, T Peel, S Moosavi, A Byrne, et al. Researching breathlessness in palliative care: consensus statement of the National Cancer Research Institute Palliative Care Breathlessness Subgroup Palliative Medicine, April 1, 2009; 23(3): 213 - 227. [Abstract] [PDF]

				J. Steier, C. J. Jolley, J. Seymour, S. Kaul, Y. M. Luo, G. F. Rafferty, N. Hart, M. I. Polkey, and J. Moxham Sleep-disordered breathing in unilateral diaphragm paralysis or severe weakness Eur. Respir. J., December 1, 2008; 32(6): 1479 - 1487. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]