Compex Sport Elite - Manual (Page 173)

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IV. HOW DOES ELECTROSTIMULATION WORK
T
he principle of electrostimulation is
to stimulate nerve fibres by means of
electrical impulses transmitted by
electrodes.
T
he electrical impulses generated by
Compex stimulators are high-quality
impulses – ensuring safety, comfort
and efficiency – that stimulate diffe-
rent types of nerve fibres:
1. the motor nerves to stimulate a muscular res-
ponse. The quantity of work and the benefits ob-
tained depend on the stimulation parameters.
This is known as electromuscularstimulation
(EMS).
2. certain types of sensitive nerve fibres to obtain
analgesic or pain-relieving effects.
1. Motor nerve stimulation
(EMS)
I
n voluntary activity, the order for
muscular work comes from the brain,
which sends a command to the nerve
fibres in the form of an electrical si-
gnal. This signal is then transmitted to
the muscular fibres, which contract.
T
he principle of electrostimulation ac-
curately reproduces the process ob-
served during a voluntary contraction.
The stimulator sends an electrical cur-
rent impulse to the nerve fibres, exci-
ting them. This excitation is then
transmitted to the muscular fibres
causing a basic mechanical response
(= muscular twitch). The latter consti-
tutes the basic requirement for mus-
cular contraction.
T
his muscular response is completely
identical to muscular work controlled
by the brain. In other words, the mus-
cle cannot distinguish whether the
command comes from the brain or
from the stimulator.
T
he parameters of the Compex pro-
grammes (number of impulses per se-
cond, contraction time, rest time, total
Electrical
impulse
Motor
nerve
Stimulated
muscle
Basic mechanical response = muscular twitch
Excitation
Excitation
transmission
programme time) subject the muscles
to different types of work, according
to muscular fibres. In fact, different
types of muscular fibres may be
distinguished according to their res-
pective contraction speed: slow,
intermediate and fast fibres. The fast
fibres will obviously predominate in
a sprinter, while a marathon runner
will have more slow fibres. With a
good knowledge of human physiology
and a perfect mastery of the stimula-
tion parameters of the various pro-
grammes, the muscular work can be
directed very precisely towards the
desired goal (muscular reinforcement,
increased blood flow, firming up, etc.).
2. Stimulation of the
sensitive nerves
T
he electrical impulses can also ex-
cite the sensitive nerve fibres to ob-
tain an analgesic or pain-relieving
effect.
T
he stimulation of the tactile sensitive
nerve fibres blocks the transmission
of pain by the nervous system. The
stimulation of another type of
sensitive fibres creates an increase in
the production of endorphins and,
therefore, a reduction of pain.
English
Manuel Sport Elite:Sport Elite 0706 31/01/08 15:16 Page 173