title: Posttetanic potentiation of human dorsiflexors.
abstract: Twitch contractions of the ankle dorsiflexors were evoked before and after applied 7-s tetanic stimulation at 100 Hz in 20 young adults. Torque decreased 15% during the tetanus. At 5 s after tetanus, twitch peak torque had potentiated 45%. Potentiation declined to 28% after 1 min, rose slightly to 33% at 2 min, and declined slowly with potentiation still 25% after 5 min. There was large intersubject variation in the amount of potentiation (5-140%) and its persistence (5 to >/=20 min). The muscle compound action potential (M wave) did not change significantly (from pretetanic value) at 5 s after tetanus but increased sharply (26%) at 2 min and then subsided. Twitch half relaxation time (23%) decreased significantly more than twitch rise time (13%) 5 s after tetanus and recovered more slowly. Twitch rates of torque development (75%) and relaxation (71%) increased similarly 5 s after tetanus and were still elevated (approximately 25%) at 5 min. The extent of twitch torque potentiation was significantly inversely correlated with pretetanic twitch rise time (r = -0.69), half relaxation time (r = -0.61), and twitch-to-tetanus ratio (r = -0.66). The data indicate that posttetanic potentiation has a greater effect on twitch half relaxation time than on time to peak torque and is more prominent in muscles with a short twitch time course and small twitch-to-tetanus ratio.
authors.affiliation: Department of Kinesiology, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L8S 4K1.
authors.forename: D D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: O'Leary
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hope
authors.forename: D G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Sale
mesh_terms: D000200:Action Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D000328:Adult; D003213:Conditioning, Psychological / Q000502:physiology; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D004576:Electromyography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000502:physiology; D009126:Muscle Relaxation; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000502:physiology*