Neuromuscular Medicine Glossary
100 terms total — 24 showing — Last updated 15 Sep 2026
AAEM AAEM
American Association of Electrodiagnostic Medicine, the professional organization that sets standards for electrodiagnostic testing and neuromuscular medicine practice.
electromyography
Diagnostic test measuring electrical activity in muscles to assess neuromuscular function.
Endplate Noise
Spontaneous, low-amplitude electrical activity recorded from the muscle endplate region during electromyography. Represe...
Ephaptic Transmission
Abnormal electrical communication between adjacent nerve fibers due to demyelination, causing inappropriate activation o...
F-wave
A late electrophysiological response representing backfiring of motor neurons, used to assess proximal nerve conduction...
Fascicular atrophy
Selective wasting of individual muscle fascicles creating a scalloped muscle border appearance. Indicates chronic denerv...
fascicular biopsy
A minimally invasive nerve biopsy technique targeting individual fascicles while preserving nerve function.
fasciculation
Involuntary muscle twitching visible under the skin, often indicating motor neuron disease.
fasciculation potential
Spontaneous electrical discharge from a motor unit visible as brief muscle twitches, often indicating motor neuron disea...
fibrillation potential
Spontaneous electrical activity from denervated muscle fibers, appearing as small diphasic potentials on EMG.
Gowers' sign
A characteristic maneuver where patients use their hands to 'climb up' their legs when rising from floor to standing, in...
H-reflex
An electrically evoked reflex response used in nerve conduction studies to assess the integrity of the afferent and effe...
Ice pack test
Simple bedside test applying cold to ptotic eyelids to temporarily improve ptosis in myasthenia gravis patients, exploit...
inclusion body myositis
Progressive inflammatory myopathy characterized by weakness of distal and proximal muscles with distinctive pathological...
Incremental Response
An increase in compound motor action potential amplitude with repetitive nerve stimulation at high frequencies. Characte...
insertional activity
Brief electrical discharges produced by mechanical stimulation during needle electrode insertion into muscle.
IVIG
Intravenous Immunoglobulin. A blood product therapy used to treat various autoimmune neuromuscular conditions including...
Jiggle Factor
A quantitative measure of neuromuscular transmission variability in single-fiber electromyography, calculated from conse...
jitter
Variability in neuromuscular transmission timing measured during single-fiber electromyography, reflecting neuromuscular...
Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome
A presynaptic neuromuscular disorder causing weakness that improves with exercise, often associated with malignancy.
miniature end-plate potential
Spontaneous small electrical potentials recorded at the neuromuscular junction representing single acetylcholine vesicle...
Mitochondrial myopathy
Muscle disorders caused by defects in mitochondrial function, characterized by exercise intolerance, weakness, and often...
motor end-plate
Specialized region of muscle fiber membrane where motor neuron terminals form synapses, constituting the postsynaptic co...
motor neuron disease
A group of progressive degenerative disorders affecting motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord.
Motor Point
The skin surface location where electrical stimulation most effectively activates a muscle with minimal current. Anatomi...