Intercostal nerveconduction study inman

SUMMARY A new surface technique fortheconduction study ofthelower intercostal nerveshasbeen developed andapplied to30normal subjects. Theproblem oftheshort available nervesegmentofthe intercostal nervesandthebizzare compound motoraction potential (CMAP)ofinconsistent latency while recording overtheintercostal muscles, isovercome byapplying recording electrodes over the rectus abdominis muscle andstimulating the nervesattwopoints atafair distance away. Withtheuse ofmultiple recording sites overtherectus abdominis, themotorpoints fordifferent intercostal nerves weredelineated. CMAP ofreproducible latencies andwaveforms withsharptake-off points were obtained. Conduction velocity oftheintercostal nervescould bedetermined.