No abstract

The aim of the study was to estimate the influence of force changes during relaxation from maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) of elbow flexors on electrical (EMG) and mechanical (MMG) activity of synergists and antagonists at different joint angles. Repeated studies were conducted on 22 young female students to estimate the EMG and MMG activity of the biceps brachii (BB), brachioradialis (BR), and triceps brachii (TB) muscles during relaxation from MVC at an optimal angle (the angle at which a subject achieved MVC=Lo), as well as at angles that were smaller (Ls=Lo-30 degrees ) and bigger (Ll=Lo+30 degrees ). Four testing sessions consisted of 2-s or 3-s MVC at each angle with simultaneous recording of EMG and MMG signals from BB, BR, and TB muscles. The EMG/MMG probes were used to record EMG and MMG signals. The results showed that the slow relaxation rate was related to a percentage decrease of the EMG amplitude (as measured by root mean square; EMG RMS) of the synergists, while the fast relaxation was related to the EMG RMS of the antagonist, independent of the joint angle. The MMG amplitude (MMG RMS) increased gradually during slow and fast relaxation (compared to the MMG RMS at MVC), indicating a bigger muscle oscillation during relaxation; the changes were related to the muscle tested and joint angle. It was found that, during the slow relaxation, the MMG RMS reflects the force amplitude changes in the BB muscle and the velocity of force changes in the BB and TB muscle (but not in the BR). During the fast relaxation, the MMG amplitude reflects a change in muscle force in the TB and BB muscles (but not in the BR), and the velocity of force changes in the synergists (not in the antagonist). The different contribution of the force and velocity of force changes during slow and fast relaxation to the MMG signal in the three muscle tested can be related to the different deactivation time of each muscle. In conclusion, the present results indicate that MMG recordings might be useful to measure the fast relaxation of individual muscle during voluntary contraction, but this needs be tested on isolated muscle.