EMG Testing Can Diagnose Bell's Palsy
EMG, or electromyography, is a type of technique that is used for recording and evaluating the electrical activity of your muscles. Usually, EMG testing is done along with another kind of test that assesses the conducting nerve functions. This is actually referred to as a nerve conduction study.
The movement of the muscles involves muscular action and nerves, and also requires some sort of electrical current. There are some medical conditions in which the electrical activity of the nerves or muscles is not normal. The doctor would only be able to diagnose your condition after finding and describing the electrical properties in the nerve or muscle. An EMG may help in the diagnosis of injury (i.e. carpal tunnel syndrome) or nerve compression, nerve root injury (i.e. sciatica) and with the other problems relating to nerves or muscles. Some of the less common medical conditions are myasthenia gravis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and muscular dystrophy.
There is only a little amount of discomfort involved during EMG testing, and this is due to the pin insertion. Generally, there is no risk of infection with this since disposable needles are used. During the EMG test, you will be requested to contract your muscles by moving just a small amount. Then small electrodes would be placed around your fingers or taped to your skin. You would then experience a mild and brief shock, which may be a bit annoying and unpleasant. The person administering this test will then explain the whole procedure. Usually, the muscle activity will be monitored through a speaker for the duration of the EMG test. This may create a popping sound or a soft roaring noise. And then during the procedure, the EMG technician would look at the oscilloscope, a device that looks similar to a small television set. The entire EMG test would take 30 to 60 minutes.
After the EMG procedure, the patient is usually sent home without any kind of restriction of activities. Some people may experience minor pains and aches from the testing, and those are probably the only complications of this procedure. After the EMG test, a report will be sent to your doctor. Normal results usually indicate that the muscle tissue is electrically inactive or at rest. Once the electrical activity from the irritation of the needle insertion settles down, then the EMG should detect no type of abnormal spontaneous activity. The muscles that are at rest should be in an electrically silent state, except for neuromuscular junction area, which in its normal state, is electrically very spontaneous active. But when you voluntarily contract your muscles, then action potentials will start to appear. As you increase the strength of your muscle contraction, then more muscle fibers will create action potentials. When you fully contract your muscles, a disorderly group of action potentials should appear with different rate and amplitudes. In case you get abnormal results in your EMG test, then the doctor will discuss it with you and talk about your options regarding your condition.
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