Intra-Day and Inter-Day Reliability of Measurements of the electromyographic signal on masseter and temporal muscles in patients with Down syndrome

Lilian Chrystiane Giannasi,Daniel Batista Da Silva,Jose B O Amorim,Claudia Santos Oliveira,Fabiano Politti,Gabriela R C Silva,Luis Vicente Franco Oliveira,Gabriela P Mancilha,Marignês T S Dutra,Vera L S Tenguan,Miguel Angel Castillo Salgado,Mônica F Gomes

doi:10.1038/s41598-020-63963-z

Lilian Chrystiane Giannasi, Daniel Batista Da Silva + Show 10 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-63963-z

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Abstract

The aim of the present study was to evaluate intra-day (test) and inter-day (re-test) reliability of surface electromyography (sEMG) signals of the masseter and temporal muscles in patients with Down syndrome (DS). We determined the reliability of sEMG variables in 33 patients with DS. EMG signals were recorded at rest as well as during maximum voluntary clenching and maximum habitual intercuspation (MHI). The signals were analyzed considering the amplitude in the root mean square (RMS), mean frequency (MNF), median frequency (MDF) and approximate entropy (ApEn). The intraclass correlation (ICC2,1) for the three trials recorded during MHI in the two sessions (test and retest) revealed excellent intra-session and inter-session reliability (ICC2,1 = 0.76 to 0.97) for all sEMG variables and muscles. In the rest position, excellent reliability was found for RMS and ApEn (ICC2,1 = 0.75 to 1.00) and good to excellent reliability was found for MDF and MNF (ICC2,1 = 0.64 to 0.93). The intra-session (test) and inter-session (re-test) analyses demonstrated the reliability of nonlinear sEMG variables of the masticatory muscles in adults with Down Syndrome.

Highlights

The aim of the present study was to evaluate intra-day and inter-day reliability of surface electromyography signals of the masseter and temporal muscles in patients with Down syndrome (DS)
The sample was composed of 23 adults with DS (15 men and eight women) with a mean age of 22.7 ± 6.5 years, mean body mass index (BMI) of 28.5 ± 6.8 kg/m2 and mean neck circumference of 40.3 ± 4.2 cm (Table 1)
The reliability of the surface electromyography (sEMG) variables was determined in all participants

Summary

Introduction

The aim of the present study was to evaluate intra-day (test) and inter-day (re-test) reliability of surface electromyography (sEMG) signals of the masseter and temporal muscles in patients with Down syndrome (DS). The combination of abnormal masticatory muscle function (due to hypotonia) and altered skeletal developmental (e.g., discrepancy between alveolar arches, reduced maxillary length and midface retrusion) has several consequences during the growth phase, such as oromotor incoordination (weak jaw-closing muscles, hypotonicity of the tongue and inefficient lingual lateralization), difficulties during meals (choking, belching and food spillage from the mouth), uncontrolled facial movements, mouth open at rest and mouth-breathing due to poor muscle tonicity[8,9,10] Some of these abnormal muscle functions, such as those in the muscles responsible for the sustaining and moving the jaw (masseter and temporal) can be measured using surface electromyography (EMGs). Median frequency (MDF) is another linear variable widely used to interpret spectral characteristics of sEMG signals, reflecting muscle electrophysiology in different clinical conditions such as temporomandibular disordes[13], cerebral palsy[14] and low back pain[15]

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