Exploring Back Muscle Activities in Chronic Low Back Pain Patients Using a Large-Area Stretchable Electrode Array...

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Neuroscience
• Rehabilitation Science

Background:

• Assessing neuromuscular function in chronic low back pain (CLBP) is vital.
• Current methods are limited by electrode array size and stretchability, focusing only on lower back muscles.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a large-area, stretchable high-density surface electromyography (HD-sEMG) electrode array for comprehensive back muscle activity assessment.
• To investigate neuromuscular differences between CLBP patients and healthy controls.

Main Methods:

• Designed a 64-channel, stretchable HD-sEMG array for full back coverage.
• Acquired 128-channel HD-sEMG signals during the Biering-Sørensen test in healthy controls and CLBP patients.
• Analyzed sEMG metrics and topographic maps for muscle activity and fatigue.

Main Results:

• The developed electrode array demonstrated operability, scalability, and reliable data acquisition.
• Significant differences in muscle activity patterns, contraction times, and fatigue metrics were observed between CLBP patients and controls.
• Regional variations in muscle activation were identified across the lower, upper, and full back segments.

Conclusions:

• The novel HD-sEMG array enables comprehensive back muscle analysis in CLBP.
• Findings provide new insights into neuromuscular dysfunction and physiological adaptations in CLBP patients.