Pelvic floor muscle (PFM) force and coordination are related to urinary incontinence severity and to sexual satisfaction. Health professionals frequently combine classic PFM exercises with hip adduction/abduction contraction to treat these disorders, but the real benefits of this practice are still unknown. Based on a theoretical anatomy approach whereby the levator ani muscle is inserted into ...

PURPOSE The function of the brachioradialis muscle is controversial. The objective of this study was to determine primary and secondary functions of the brachioradialis under various loading tasks as measured by EMG. METHODS Ten healthy individuals (9 men, 1 woman; average age, 34 years +/- 10; average height, 175 cm +/- 7; average weight, 76 kg +/- 13) performed elbow flexion with the forear...

The purposes of this study were 1) to evaluate gender differences in back extensor endurance capacity during isometric and isotonic muscular contractions, 2) to determine the relation between absolute load and endurance time, and 3) to compare men [n = 10, age 22.4 +/- 0.69 (SE) yr] and women (n = 10, age 21.7 +/- 1.07 yr) in terms of neuromuscular activation patterns and median frequency (MF) ...

Neuromuscular electrical stimulation and voluntary muscle contraction are two exercise modes widely used in rehabilitation to strengthen skeletal muscle. Since there is no debate as to which mode is most effective, we compared electrical stimulation with voluntary contraction performed at matched intensities following reconstructive surgery of the anterior cruciate ligament. Forty men and women...

Threads of contractile proteins were formed via extrusion and their isometric tensions and isotonic contraction velocities were measured. We obtained reproducible data by using a new and sensitive tensiometer. The force-velocity curves of actomyosin threads were similar to those of muscle, with isometric tensions of the order of 10g/cm2 and maximum contraction velocites of the order of 10(-2) l...

Muscle fatigue is a reduction in the capacity to exert force and may involve a "central" component originating in the brain and/or spinal cord. Here we examined whether supraspinal factors contribute to impaired central drive after locomotor endurance exercise. On 2 separate days, 10 moderately active individuals completed a locomotor cycling exercise session or a control session. Brief (2 s) a...

In 11 healthy volunteers, we evaluated, in a double-blind crossover study, whether the vasodilation that follows isometric contraction is mediated by prostaglandins (PGs) and/or is O2 dependent. Subjects performed isometric handgrip for 2 min at 60% maximal voluntary contraction (MVC), after pretreatment with placebo or aspirin (600 mg orally), when breathing air or 40% O2. Forearm blood flow w...

Maximal and submaximal activation level of the right knee-extensor muscle group were studied during isometric and slow isokinetic muscular contractions in eight male subjects. The activation level was quantified by means of the twitch interpolation technique. A single electrical impulse was delivered, whatever the contraction mode, on the femoral nerve at a constant 50 degrees knee flexion (0 d...