Central adaptations during repetitive contractions assessed by the readiness potential

Physiological fatigue, a loss of maximal force producing capacity, may originate both from changes at the peripheral and at the central level. The readiness potential (RP) provides a measure to study adaptations to physiological fatigue at the motor cortex. We have studied the RP in the course of repetitive contractions at a high force level. Fourteen female healthy subjects made repetitive force grip contractions at 70% of their maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) for 30 min. Contractions were self-paced and inter-squeeze interval was about 7 s. During the repetitive contractions, the area under the curve of the RP almost doubled at electrode Cz and increased fourfold at electrodes C3' and C4'. The onset of negativity moved forward from 1.5 to 1.9 s before force onset at Cz and from 1.0 to 1.6 s and 1.7 s before force onset at C3' and C4', respectively. EMG amplitude and median frequency did not change significantly and MVC after the fatiguing exercise was 93% of MVC before, indicating relatively little physiological fatigue. The increase of the RP during the repetitive contractions is clearly in excess of the almost absent signs of peripheral fatigue. Because the increase of the RP does not lead to an increased force production, we propose that it is a central adaptation counteracting the decrease of cortical efficiency during repetitive contractions.