Comparison of electric and magnetic coil stimulation in the supraclavicular region

We compared the compound motor action potentials (CMAPs) evoked in the biceps, triceps, and abductor digiti minimi (ADM) muscles by conventional electrical stimulation at Erb's point (EP), and by magnetic coil stimulation of the supraclavicular region in 11 normal subjects. We found that magnetic coil stimulation was less effective than conventional stimulation in activating motor fibers in the brachial plexus in 45% of the recordings analyzed. CMAP amplitudes greater than those obtained with EP electrical stimulation were seen in 16% of recordings with supraclavicular magnetic stimulation, and in 33% of recordings with cervical magnetic stimulation, indicating that EP electrical stimulation is submaximal in a large proportion of cases.