Electromyography to Diagnose Neuromuscular Disorders

March 3, 2008 updated by: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)

Diagnosis of Neuromuscular Disorders With Specialized Electromyographic Studies

This study will investigate problems with muscle weakness and control using electromyography-a test of nerve-muscle cell communication. Advanced techniques called single fiber electromyography and macro-electromyography, which evaluate individual muscle fibers, will be used. Besides aiding in diagnosis, these tests provide information about disease progression that may be useful in guiding therapy.

Adult patients with suspected neurological disorders of muscle control and weakness may be eligible for this study. Normal volunteers may also participate. For the electromyography procedure, a special needle is inserted into a muscle. The patient will slightly tense the muscle and maintain the tension while electrical signals from the muscle fibers are being recorded. The electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker, providing feedback to help the patient tense the muscle the appropriate amount. The test, which is usually done for only one muscle, takes 1 to 2 hours. If needed, short breaks can be taken.

If the patient cannot maintain tension in the muscle for the entire test period, a nerve will be stimulated to activate the muscle. A thin needle is inserted near the nerve, and a series of small electrical shocks are given to activate a nerve fiber. The electromyography needle is inserted into the muscle to measure the response, as described above.

A neurologist receiving specialized training in clinical neurophysiology will do the electromyography procedure under the direct supervision of an experienced neurologist.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

This is a training protocol to enable fellows in clinical neurophysiology to learn and perform technically advanced electrodiagnostic studies, such as single fiber EMG and macro EMG, on patients with neuromuscular diseases.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment

30

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Maryland
      • Bethesda, Maryland, United States, 20892
        • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • ADULT
  • OLDER_ADULT
  • CHILD

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

INCLUSION CRITERIA:

Adult patients with weakness or motor dysfunction: 8/year.

Normal volunteers, adults: 2/year.

EXCLUSION CRITERIA:

Anticoagulation or uncorrected bleeding disorder.

Children are not optimal subjects for fellows undergoing training in these techniques and will be excluded.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

February 1, 2000

Study Completion

November 1, 2005

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 4, 2000

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 4, 2000

First Posted (ESTIMATE)

February 7, 2000

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (ESTIMATE)

March 4, 2008

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 3, 2008

Last Verified

November 1, 2005

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 000072
  • 00-N-0072

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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