How Has Electromyography Been Used to Assess Reaching in Infants? A Systematic Review

• Published in: Journal of motor behavior Vol. 53; no. 1; pp. 117 - 127
• Main Authors: Vieira da Fonseca, Mariana, Oliveira, Ana Letícia de Souza, Figueiredo, Roberta de Matos, Lima, Rosana Tannús Freitas, Toledo, Aline Martins de
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Routledge 2021; Taylor & Francis Inc
• Subjects: Electromyography; infant; reaching; Systematic review; infant; Electromyography; reaching
• ISSN: 0022-2895; 1940-1027
• DOI: 10.1080/00222895.2020.1723476

The aims of this systematic review were: to investigate the use of surface electromyography in the assessment of reaching in infants; to assess the usefulness of this tool to the assessment of reaching, and its parameters and limitations; to assess the methodological quality of the studies available in the literature. The search in the databases MEDLINE, SciELO, LILACS, Embase, PEDro, Cochrane, and EBSCO resulted in 5 selected studies. The studies aimed to elucidate how muscle behavior occurs in the development of reaching. The lack of standardized recommendations for the use of EMG in infants limit the reproducibility and comparison between studies. There are challenges and limitations regarding the use of electromyography in infants, which are caused by peculiarities inherent to the development of the neuromotor and musculoskeletal systems.