NMES

Question 1

What does NMES do?

Answer 1

NMES stimulates muscle sensory fibres 1 and 2 through electrical stimulus.

Increases the excitability of the corticomotor pathway.

Question 2

What are the contraindications of NMES?

Answer 2

The two contraindications of NMES are pregnancy and if the patient had any electrical devices surgically put in them such as a pacemaker.

Question 3

What is a contraindication?

Answer 3

A contraindication is where a patient has a medical condition or device preventing you from using a specific physiotherapy intervention.

Question 4

What is a precaution?

Answer 4

A precaution is a medical condition that means you must take caution when carrying out this physiotherapy intervention on.

Question 5

What are the precautions of NMES?

Answer 5

The precautions of NMES are impaired sensation, cardiac history, open wounds on the site of the injury and a skin condition.

Question 6

What is NMES used for in neuro physiotherapy?

Answer 6

Stroke Rehabilitation

Question 7

What is NMES used for in cardiorespiratory physiotherapy?

Answer 7

COPD and critical illnesses

Question 8

How can NMES improve a patients health?

Answer 8

1. Preserve muscle mass during long periods of disuse or immobility for example after surgery or after a traumatic injury like if someone couldn’t walk on there leg a week after surgery they could use NMES to preserve their muscle mass.
2. It can help patients to recover muscle mass after a long period of disuse like an operation or traumatic injury.
3. Improve muscle function of people suffering with a condition which could impact their muscle function like arthritis.
4. Reduce inflammation after an acute injury by reducing the leakage of plasma proteins and increasing lymphatic drainage.
5. Can help to prevent neuromuscular inhibition. This is where pain or swelling is preventing someone from contracting a muscle.
6. Decrease pain.

Question 9

How does NMES improve neuromuscular inhibition?

Answer 9

NMES can help improve neuromuscular inhibition by increasing a persons neural drive which will increases there cortical and spinal activity. This will then allow for a greater recruitment of motor units.

Question 10

How does NMES help maintain or increase muscle mass?

Answer 10

NMES helps to maintain or increase muscle mass by helping to recruit fast twitch muscle fibres which are only recruited by a muscle in high effort contractions. Therefore showing that NMES maintains muscle mass by making sure the muscles still go through high effort contractions.

Question 11

How to have effective electrode placement?

Answer 11

1. Place both electrodes on the muscle belly.
2. Larger electrodes are more effective as they cover a larger area so will stimulate more motor units.
3. Place electrodes as far away as possible to have a more comfortable and effective contraction for the patient.
4. Place the electrodes over a motor point as it will give you a stronger contraction at a lower level of stimulus.
5. Over different sessions change the electrode placement so you stimulate a wide range of motor units as the electrodes only stimulate the muscle fibres directly below them.