Metabolic effects of two frequencies of short-term surface electrical stimulation on human muscle

The acute effects of two different frequencies of electrical stimulation on the metabolism of the vastus lateralis muscle were studied in young male and female adults. The quadriceps muscle group of one leg was stimulated for 60 min using surface electrodes that delivered square pulses of 0.6 ms duration, either continuously at 10 Hz (n = 5) or intermittently (n = 5) at 50 Hz (12 s stimulation, 48 s recovery). Biochemical analyses revealed no significant differences in glycogen or metabolite concentrations between the two conditions. Muscle lactate and citrate concentrations were increased (p less than 0.05) for both conditions, but ATP and CP concentrations were not significantly changed from rest values after stimulation. Glycogen concentrations decreased (p less than 0.05) by 24.6 and 29.1 mmol glucose units/kg after 60 min of 50 Hz and 10 Hz stimulation, respectively. Muscle fibres were identified as slow twitch (ST) and fast twitch a and b (FTa and FTb) on the basis of myofibrillar ATPase activity. Estimates of glycogen depletion in different fibre types using histochemical techniques revealed that FTa and FTb fibres had lower glycogen contents than ST fibres after 10 Hz stimulation whereas glycogen was moderately reduced in approximately 50% of all fibre types following 50 Hz stimulation. The modest changes observed in muscle metabolism following 60 min of stimulation were less than has been noted following traditional exercise, and suggest that only some of the muscle fibres were activated in the stimulated muscles at the depth where biopsy samples were removed.