Electrical stimulation expert

[SCI PILOT]

Does anybody know of reference material or an "expert" for electrical stimulation. I am trying to activate my plantar and dorsal flextion. I tried it a physio but nothing happened so I need to find out position, voltage, number of pads required. Anything to get started would be appreciated

Thanks in advance

Jim

PS - if we ever all got together for a conference what city has 20000 handicap rooms? lol

[Arnie]

You will find no better "expert" with electrical stimulation than Steve Petrofsky at Electrologic of America. Give him a call at 1-800-758-3460. Heather Davis should be able to put you in touch with him.

God Bless

Arnie Fonseca,Jr
Neuro Institute

[Red_1 Canada]

and we would not have 20,000 the first year any way...we'd be lucky to 100!
But it would be enough,or t least a start/

[Wise Young]

sci pilot,

There are limits to what surface stimulation of muscles can achieve. Also, if your muscles have atrophied, stimulation often is ineffective. Most good rehabilitation centers have specialists with experience in electrical stimulation.

Wise.

[SCI PILOT]

I talked to Heather, Steve is in Arizona at the Spinal Cord Show, she is very well versed w.r.t. electrical stimulation. There is a very low chance that ES will work below the T-12 level and mine is a L1 burst fracture. I imagine it is due to the cauda equina being all PNS and not CNS, which starts at T12. It sounds like they are the "experts", thanks for the info.

Red 1, count me in as one of the first 100 to attend.

Jim

[none]

I rode the latest "bike" the "Galaxy" from Electrologic on the 13th, this past week. My legs have never felt better since my injury 9 years ago. The electrodes were attached on my hamstrings (back of thigh) and my quads (front of thigh) but not the glutts (buttocks) because I am a T12. Heather Davis from Elctrologic suggested a Needle EMG before using the bike, but Steven Petrofsky, the inventor of FES technology, was the one who placed the electrodes and set the parameters on the Galaxy bike so I felt perfectly safe under his supervision. I rode the equivalent of 5 miles (one half hour) the first time on the Galaxy bike with no negative side affects. This CAN restore atrophied muscle with an every other day, half hour workout, over a period of months. It felt good and the bike is very user friendly. I will be talking to my insurance company Monday about the purchase of this bike.

jrm design art studio

[1sadie]

I was very pleased to meet Mr. Petrofsky and his Wife. As a nurse who deals with SCI patients often, I have come to realize from experience how much FES technology helps with wound healing and related problems that SCI patients contend with day to day.

vickievolvo

[SCI PILOT]

Does anyone know of a private clinic that does needle EMG testing? I will have to wait up to a year to get one done here. In the cinncinati area would be best so I could go see Steve P. at the same time.

Meeker did you get the bike? Did you try the ES machine while you were there?

Jim

[SCI PILOT]

I am bumping this up to see if anyone knows of where they do private EMG testing.

Thanks

Jim

[etexley]

I am able to achieve dorsiflexion and plantar flexion with a small stim unit, using transcutanious (surface electrodes.) I stimulate my gastronemuis and my anterior tibula for several minutes every other day.

My recommendation is to get a muscle atlas...learn where the muscles are. On a saturday, spend a couple hours playing with very low current, trying to find the motor points for your muscles.

Dr. Young, as a muscle undergoes atrophy is there a change in the relative numbers of slow twitch and fast twitch muscle fibers?

[SCI PILOT]

Eric

Firstly, have you got any improvement in voluntary movement since you have been using the ES? Do you put the second pad on the body of the muscle?

Secondly I have the book:

The Extremities: Muscles & Motor Points
Author: John H. Warfel

It is an excellent source that show the motor point for each muscle in the extremities.

I can voluntarily move my plantar and dorsey on the right side and my dorsey on the left. But when I used a CEFAR stim unit it could only move my right dorsey. I did this with my PT we moved those damn pads around for 2 hours and took the machine up to 270 mA.

What brand of machine do you have, what mA do you take it up to?

I want to do an EMG to find the exact motor points and then try more ES on the muscles. It would be nice if there were a wand that you could move around the muscle light an ultrasound unit to find the motor points.

It is great to find someone else trying this.

Jim

[SCI PILOT]

Well, with it taking so long to get an EMG I decided to go to electrologic direct and give the system a try.

I am really stuck on getting my planter dorsey working, does anyone know how they do it at PW? Do they brace everyone with AFO's? Or is there a exercise to get that system going?

I will be in cincinnati on the 31st (Jan) to give this a try. Just a quick trip fly on the 30th and back on the 1st. I am going to have steve / heather try and move my feet with the neuro pulse.

I plan on video taping the session to show my doctor there is other stims out there and they are not all created equal.

If this doesn't help I need some more advice from the forum on how to work the planter dorsey.

Thanks

Jim