RESUMEN
INTRODUCTION: Motor unit number estimates (MUNEs) provide important information in health, aging, and disease, and can be determined using decomposition-enhanced spike-triggered averaging (DE-STA). Discrimination of surface-detected motor unit potentials (S-MUPs) has been limited to contractile forces of â½30% maximum voluntary contraction (MVC), which is insufficient to recruit a representative sample of the entire MU pool in most muscles. Unique features of the anconeus may permit MUNEs at high muscle activation levels. METHODS: In 10 men (25 ± 3 years), anconeus MUNEs were performed using DE-STA at 10%, 30%, and 50% root-mean-square of MVC (RMS(MVC)). RESULTS: The mean compound muscle action potential of the anconeus was â½6 mV, and average S-MUP amplitudes were â½100 µV, 145 µV, and 235 µV at 10%, 30%, and 50% RMS(MVC), resulting in low average MUNEs of 58, 38, and 25, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Elbow extensor force-EMG relationships suggest full recruitment of the anconeus MU pool at 50% RMS(MVC), thus providing a representative sample for MUNE.