Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 3, 2026

Muscle Velocity Recovery Cycles to Examine Muscle Membrane Properties
Published on: February 19, 2020
Rippling is not always electrically silent in rippling muscle disease
Takakuni Maki1, Riki Matsumoto, Nobuo Kohara
1Department of Neurology, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, 54 Kawaharacho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan.
Abstract:
Rippling muscle disease (RMD) is a myopathy with hyperirritability, the pathophysiology for which is uncertain.We report electromyographic findings in a 30-year-old man with RMD. Clinical features included muscle rippling and percussion-induced rapid muscle contractions. Both were associated with bursts of short-duration, low-amplitude spikes, which resembled single muscle fiber discharges. Our case stands in contrast to previously reported cases, which showed either electrical silence or motor unit potential discharges associated with rippling, and may represent muscle fiber hyperexcitability.
Insights
Rippling muscle disease (RMD) is a rare myopathy. Electromyography in one patient revealed unique muscle fiber hyperexcitability, differing from previous RMD findings.
Area of Science:
- Neurology
- Muscle Physiology
- Electromyography
Background:
- Rippling muscle disease (RMD) is a myopathy characterized by muscle hyperirritability.
- The underlying pathophysiology of RMD remains uncertain.
- Previous electromyographic findings in RMD cases have varied, including electrical silence or motor unit potentials.
Related Concept Videos
Alterations in Muscle Tone lll
Muscle Stimulation Frequency
Wave summation
At low firing rates, motor neurons induce individual twitch contractions in muscle fibers. These twitches...
REM Sleep Behavior Disorder
RBD is significantly associated with...
Cardiomyopathy IV: Restrictive Cardiomyopathy
Relaxation of Skeletal Muscles
When an action potential reaches the axon terminal, it depolarizes the membrane and opens voltage-gated sodium channels. Sodium ions enter the cell, further depolarizing the presynaptic membrane. This depolarization causes voltage-gated calcium channels to open.
Pulse rhythm
Conversely, an irregular pulse pattern is termed dysrhythmia, stemming from disruptions in cardiac muscle...

