Muscular Fatigue Evaluation in Patients With Diabetic Neuropathy by Means of Multichannel Surface Electromyography After a Rehabilitative Training: Aerobic Versus Endurance Training.

The instrumental session consisted of the registration of sEMG signals during electrically stimulated and voluntary contractions according to a consolidated standardized protocol. The investigated muscle is the Anterior Tibial.

Each subjects sat comfortably on a chair with his/her ankle flexed at 90° degree and knee extended; the leg was fixed at 90 degrees, in the isometric brace fixed on a plane (MISO1, LISiN Bioengineering Centre, Turin Polytechnic, Italy Torque was measured with a modular brace incorporating two independent torque transducers (model TR11, CCT Transducers, Torino, Italy).

The signal from the two torque meters were amplified, summed and displayed by means of a visual feedback system, which provided the subject with information regarding the torque level produced. Torque signal were stored to be analysed later.

The sEMG signal of the right Anterior Tibial was investigated with a flexible adhesive linear array of 16 electrodes (silver bars 10 mm long, 1 mm diameter, 10 mm apart) in single differential (SD) configuration. The optimal position and orientation of the array was determined at moderate contraction levels by visual inspection of the signal. It provided clear motor unit action potentials with similar propagation in the two directions from the neuromuscular junction to the tendons.

The reference electrode was positioned on the patient's leg. The skin was cleaned by slightly abrading it with abrasive gel before positioning the array.