Whole plantar nerve conduction study with disposable strip electrodes.

Introduction: A new method to evaluate whole plantar nerve conduction with disposable strip electrodes (DSEs) is described.

Methods: Whole plantar compound nerve action potentials (CNAPs) were recorded at the ankle. DSEs were attached to the sole for simultaneous stimulation of medial and lateral plantar nerves. We also conducted medial plantar nerve conduction studies using an established method and compared the findings.

Results: Whole plantar CNAPs were recorded bilaterally from 32 healthy volunteers. Mean baseline to peak amplitude for CNAPs was 26.9 ± 11.8 μV, and mean maximum conduction velocity was 65.8 ± 8.3 m/s. The mean amplitude of CNAPs obtained by our method was 58.2% higher than that of CNAPs obtained by the Saeed method (26.9 μV vs. 17.0 μV; P < 0.0001).

Conclusions: The higher mean amplitude of whole plantar CNAPs obtained by our method suggests that it enables CNAPs to be obtained easily, even in elderly people.