Electrical impedance myography discriminates congenital muscular dystrophy from controls. Issue 3 (13th August 2015) - Schwartz, Daniel P.
ABSTRACT: Introduction: Electrical impedance myography (EIM) is an emerging non‐invasive, highly reproducible electrophysiological technique that objectively characterizes muscle structure and composition by measuring bioimpedance. We assessed the ability of EIM ability to discriminate 2 forms of congenital muscular dystrophy (CMD), laminin α2 (LAMA2)–deficient CMD and collagen VI–deficient (COL6) CMD, from a group of healthy children. We also investigated correlations between subcutaneous fat thickness and EIM parameters. Methods: Twenty‐eight children with LAMA2 CMD ( n = 12) or COL6 ( n = 16) CMD and 18 normal children underwent EIM testing. Results: The EIM 50‐kHz phase was decreased in LAMA2 and COL6 CMD when compared with controls ( P < 0.001). Reactance, however, was decreased in COL6 but not LAMA2 CMD compared with controls ( P < 0.001). Conclusions: Our findings suggest that EIM may be useful in discriminating CMD from controls and may serve as a useful biomarker to follow disease progression in clinical trials. Muscle Nerve 53: 402–406, 2016