Muscle condition measurement sheet

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2017347908-A1
Application number	US-201715432947-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Feb 15, 2017
Priority date	Jun 7, 2016
Publication date	Dec 7, 2017
Grant date	—

Abstract

An object of the present disclosure is to provide a muscle condition measurement sheet that can quantitatively detect the amplitude and latency of an evoked electromyogram EMG or an evoked mechanomyogram MMG and correctly evaluate the state of activity of a muscle. A pair of stimulating electrodes and all myoelectric detection electrodes come into intimate contact with a body surface of a muscle, appearing on a back surface of an insulating sheet spaced at predetermined intervals; accordingly, the relative position between an electrical stimulation position and the myoelectric detection electrode is fixed and the amplitude and latency of the evoked electromyogram EMG can be quantitatively detected without depending on the stimulation position of an electrical stimulation signal.

First claim

1 . A muscle condition measurement sheet used in an evaluation system for positioning a back surface of an insulating sheet on a body surface of a muscle to be measured, the back surface being on a side facing the body surface, applying an electrical stimulation signal to a body surface near the muscle to be measured, and evaluating the state of activity of the muscle based on muscle action potentials appearing on the body surface near the muscle, the muscle condition measurement sheet comprising:
a pair of stimulating electrodes including an anode and a cathode between which an electrical stimulation signal is output; one or two or more myoelectric detection electrodes configured to detect a muscle action potential evoked by the electrical stimulation signal; an insulating sheet causing the pair of stimulating electrodes and the one or two or more myoelectric detection electrodes to appear on a back surface thereof such that an interval between the stimulating electrode and at least any of the myoelectric detection electrodes, which are exposed from the back surface, is shorter than the length of a muscle fiber of the muscle to be measured; and lead patterns wired on the insulating sheet to extend the pair of stimulating electrodes and all the myoelectric detection electrodes respectively to external circuits, wherein the pair of stimulating electrodes and all the myoelectric detection electrodes are brought into intimate contact with a body surface, spaced at predetermined intervals.

2 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 1 , wherein
a reference electrode having a constant potential appears on the back surface of the insulating sheet, and the muscle action potential of the myoelectric detection electrode is detected based on a difference in potential from the reference electrode in intimate contact with the body surface.

3 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 1 , wherein
the insulating sheet is a long and slim band-shaped sheet body to be positioned on the body surface along the muscle to be measured, the pair of stimulating electrodes is caused to appear at one end in a longitudinal direction of the back surface of the sheet body, and the plurality of myoelectric detection electrodes is caused to appear respectively at different positions along the longitudinal direction from the one end toward the other end of the back surface of the sheet body.

4 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 1 , wherein the pair of stimulating electrodes and the plurality of myoelectric detection electrodes are caused to appear respectively at positions distributed on a flat surface of the back surface of the insulating sheet.

5 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 4 , wherein
the pair of stimulating electrodes is caused to appear at one end of the back surface of the insulating sheet, and the plurality of myoelectric detection electrodes is caused to appear respectively at positions distributed in a grid pattern on the back surface of the insulating sheet.

6 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 4 , wherein
a position where one of the stimulating electrodes, the anode or the cathode, appears on the back surface of the insulating sheet is centered, and the other stimulating electrode is caused to appear in a ring form at a position around the center, and the plurality of myoelectric detection electrodes is caused to appear respectively at positions distributed on a plurality of circles being concentric around the center.

7 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 1 , wherein
the electrical stimulation signal is equal to or greater than 5 mA, and an exposure area of at least one of the stimulating electrodes exposed from the back surface of the insulating sheet is equal to or greater than 100 mm 2 .

8 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 1 , wherein the pair of stimulating electrodes is caused to appear on the back surface, protruding from the back surface of the insulating sheet.

9 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 1 , wherein the muscle condition measurement sheet is used in an evaluation system for obtaining the propagation speed of a muscle action potential evoked by the electrical stimulation signal, based on latencies of the one or two or more myoelectric detection electrodes in the detection of the muscle action potential, and evaluating the state of activity of the muscle based on the propagation speed.

10 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 9 , wherein an interval between the plurality of myoelectric detection electrodes appearing on the back surface of the insulating sheet along the muscle to be measured is less than 15 mm.

11 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 1 , wherein each lead pattern connected to a corresponding myoelectric detection electrode thereof is formed in a shape with a cross-sectional area thereof increased in proportion to the length of the lead pattern.

12 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 11 , wherein the periphery of the lead pattern is surrounded by a ground conductor, spaced with an insulating interval.

13 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 1 , further comprising a mechanomyography sensor configured to detect micro vibration of the muscle induced by the electrical stimulation signal, wherein
the insulating sheet includes the mechanomyography sensor having a detection surface appearing at a position, which does not interfere with the stimulating electrodes and the myoelectric detection electrodes, on the back surface, and the detection surface of the mechanomyography sensor is brought into intimate contact with the body surface at a predetermined distance away from the pair of stimulating electrodes.

14 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 13 , wherein
the pair of stimulating electrodes is caused to appear in a ring form on both sides across the detection surface of the mechanomyography sensor on the back surface of the insulating sheet, and the back surface of the insulating sheet is positioned on the body surface in such a manner as to bring the detection surface of the mechanomyography sensor into intimate contact with the body surface having a maximum lateral displacement orthogonal to a muscle fiber direction of the muscle to be measured.

15 . The muscle condition measurement sheet according to claim 13 , wherein the mechanomyography sensor is a microphone.

Assignees

• Umemura Educational Inst
• Smk Kk

Inventors

• Watanabe Kohei
• Ejiri Koichiro
• Kondo Haruhiko
• Tanaka Tsubasa

Classifications

• A61B2562/046

  in a matrix array · CPC title

• A61B5/6832

  using adhesives (conductive adhesive for bioelectric electrodes A61B5/259) · CPC title

• A61B2560/0468

  Built-in electrodes · CPC title

• A61B2562/164

  the sensor is mounted in or on a conformable substrate or carrier · CPC title

• A61B5/227

  of constricting muscles, i.e. sphincters · CPC title