Surface Electromyography in Clinical Practice. A Perspective From a Developing Country
Date
2020-10
Type:
Article
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Abstract
Surface electromyography (sEMG) has long been used in research, health care, and
other fields such as ergonomics and brain-machine interfaces. In health care, sEMG
has been employed to diagnose as well as to treat musculoskeletal disorders, pelvic
floor dysfunction, and post-stroke motor deficits, among others. Despite the extensive
literature on sEMG, the clinical community has not widely adopted it. We believe that
in developing countries, such as Chile, this phenomenon may be explained by several
interacting barriers. First, the socioeconomics of the country creates an environment
where only high cost-effective treatments are routinely applied. Second, the majority
of the sEMG literature on clinical applications has not extensively translated into
decisive outcomes, which interferes with its applicability in low-income contexts. Third,
clinical training on rehabilitation provides inadequate instruction on sEMG. And fourth,
accessibility to equipment (i.e., affordability, availability, portability) may constitute another
barrier, especially among developing countries. Here, we analyze socio-economic
indicators of health care in Chile and comment on current literature about the use of sEMG
in rehabilitation. Then we analyze the curricula of several physical therapy schools in Chile
and report some estimations of the training on sEMG. Finally, we analyze the accessibility
of some available sEMG devices and show that several match predefined criteria. We
conclude that in developing countries, the insufficient use of sEMG in health might be
explained by a shortage of evidence showing a crucial role in specific outcomes and the
lack of training in rehabilitation-related careers, which interact with local socioeconomic
factors that limit the application of these techniques.
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Citation
Frontiers in Neurology, 2020 oct, vol.11:578829.
Keywords
Surface electromyography, Neurorehabilitation, Physiotherapy education, Low-income countries, Chile, Clinical training, Electromyographic biofeedback