Does Muscle Pain Induce Alterations in the Pelvic Floor Motor Unit Activity Properties in Interstitial Cystitis/Bladder Pain Syndrome? A High-Density sEMG-Based Study

Several studies have shown interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS), a chronic condition that poses challenges in both diagnosis and treatment, is associated with painful pelvic floor muscles (PFM) and altered neural drive to these muscles. However, its pathophysiology could also involve...

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Main Authors: Monica Albaladejo-Belmonte, Michael Houston, Nicholas Dias, Theresa Spitznagle, Henry Lai, Yingchun Zhang, Javier Garcia-Casado
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-11-01
Series:Sensors
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/24/23/7417
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author Monica Albaladejo-Belmonte
Michael Houston
Nicholas Dias
Theresa Spitznagle
Henry Lai
Yingchun Zhang
Javier Garcia-Casado
author_facet Monica Albaladejo-Belmonte
Michael Houston
Nicholas Dias
Theresa Spitznagle
Henry Lai
Yingchun Zhang
Javier Garcia-Casado
author_sort Monica Albaladejo-Belmonte
collection DOAJ
description Several studies have shown interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS), a chronic condition that poses challenges in both diagnosis and treatment, is associated with painful pelvic floor muscles (PFM) and altered neural drive to these muscles. However, its pathophysiology could also involve other alterations in the electrical activity of PFM motor units (MUs). Studying these alterations could provide novel insights into IC/BPS and help its clinical management. This study aimed to characterize PFM activity at the MU level in women with IC/BPS and pelvic floor myalgia using high-density surface electromyography (HD-sEMG). Signals were recorded from 15 patients and 15 healthy controls and decomposed into MU action potential (MUAP) spike trains. MUAP amplitude, firing rate, and magnitude-squared coherence between spike trains were compared across groups. Results showed that MUAPs had significantly lower amplitudes during contractions on the patients’ left PFM, and delta-band coherence was significantly higher at rest on their right PFM compared to controls. These findings suggest altered PFM tissue and neuromuscular control in women with IC/BPS and pelvic floor myalgia. Our results demonstrate that HD-sEMG can provide novel insights into IC/BPS-related PFM dysfunction and biomarkers that help identify subgroups of IC/BPS patients, which may aid their diagnosis and treatment.
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spelling doaj-art-388ed60eeab7484e99b24fc25fe36eca2024-12-13T16:31:27ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202024-11-012423741710.3390/s24237417Does Muscle Pain Induce Alterations in the Pelvic Floor Motor Unit Activity Properties in Interstitial Cystitis/Bladder Pain Syndrome? A High-Density sEMG-Based StudyMonica Albaladejo-Belmonte0Michael Houston1Nicholas Dias2Theresa Spitznagle3Henry Lai4Yingchun Zhang5Javier Garcia-Casado6Centro de Investigación e Innovación en Bioingeniería (CI2B), Universitat Politècnica de València, Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 Valencia, SpainDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77204, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77204, USAProgram in Physical Therapy, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63108, USADivision of Urologic Surgery, Departments of Surgery and Anesthesiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USADepartment of Biomedical Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77204, USACentro de Investigación e Innovación en Bioingeniería (CI2B), Universitat Politècnica de València, Camino de Vera s/n, 46022 Valencia, SpainSeveral studies have shown interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome (IC/BPS), a chronic condition that poses challenges in both diagnosis and treatment, is associated with painful pelvic floor muscles (PFM) and altered neural drive to these muscles. However, its pathophysiology could also involve other alterations in the electrical activity of PFM motor units (MUs). Studying these alterations could provide novel insights into IC/BPS and help its clinical management. This study aimed to characterize PFM activity at the MU level in women with IC/BPS and pelvic floor myalgia using high-density surface electromyography (HD-sEMG). Signals were recorded from 15 patients and 15 healthy controls and decomposed into MU action potential (MUAP) spike trains. MUAP amplitude, firing rate, and magnitude-squared coherence between spike trains were compared across groups. Results showed that MUAPs had significantly lower amplitudes during contractions on the patients’ left PFM, and delta-band coherence was significantly higher at rest on their right PFM compared to controls. These findings suggest altered PFM tissue and neuromuscular control in women with IC/BPS and pelvic floor myalgia. Our results demonstrate that HD-sEMG can provide novel insights into IC/BPS-related PFM dysfunction and biomarkers that help identify subgroups of IC/BPS patients, which may aid their diagnosis and treatment.https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/24/23/7417coherencehigh-density surface electromyographyinterstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndromemotor unitpelvic floor muscles
spellingShingle Monica Albaladejo-Belmonte
Michael Houston
Nicholas Dias
Theresa Spitznagle
Henry Lai
Yingchun Zhang
Javier Garcia-Casado
Does Muscle Pain Induce Alterations in the Pelvic Floor Motor Unit Activity Properties in Interstitial Cystitis/Bladder Pain Syndrome? A High-Density sEMG-Based Study
Sensors
coherence
high-density surface electromyography
interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome
motor unit
pelvic floor muscles
title Does Muscle Pain Induce Alterations in the Pelvic Floor Motor Unit Activity Properties in Interstitial Cystitis/Bladder Pain Syndrome? A High-Density sEMG-Based Study
title_full Does Muscle Pain Induce Alterations in the Pelvic Floor Motor Unit Activity Properties in Interstitial Cystitis/Bladder Pain Syndrome? A High-Density sEMG-Based Study
title_fullStr Does Muscle Pain Induce Alterations in the Pelvic Floor Motor Unit Activity Properties in Interstitial Cystitis/Bladder Pain Syndrome? A High-Density sEMG-Based Study
title_full_unstemmed Does Muscle Pain Induce Alterations in the Pelvic Floor Motor Unit Activity Properties in Interstitial Cystitis/Bladder Pain Syndrome? A High-Density sEMG-Based Study
title_short Does Muscle Pain Induce Alterations in the Pelvic Floor Motor Unit Activity Properties in Interstitial Cystitis/Bladder Pain Syndrome? A High-Density sEMG-Based Study
title_sort does muscle pain induce alterations in the pelvic floor motor unit activity properties in interstitial cystitis bladder pain syndrome a high density semg based study
topic coherence
high-density surface electromyography
interstitial cystitis/bladder pain syndrome
motor unit
pelvic floor muscles
url https://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/24/23/7417
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