Ultrasound-guided lateral femoral cutaneous nerve conduction study.
OBJECTIVE
To verify the utility of the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve (LFCN) ultrasound-guided conduction technique compared to that of the conventional nerve conduction technique.


METHODS
Fifty-eight legs of 29 healthy participants (18 males and 11 females; mean age, 42.7±14.9 years) were recruited. The conventional technique was performed bilaterally. The LFCN was localized by ultrasound. Cross-sectional area (CSA) of the LFCN and the distance between the anterior superior iliac spine (ASIS) and the LFCN was measured. The nerve conduction study was repeated with the corrected cathode location. Sensory nerve action potential (SNAP) amplitudes of the LFCN were recorded and compared between the ultrasound-guided and conventional techniques.


RESULTS
Mean body mass index of the participants was 23.7±3.5 kg/m(2), CSA was 4.2±1.9 mm(2), and the distance between the ASIS and LFCN was 5.6±1.7 mm. The mean amplitude values were 6.07±0.52 µV and 6.66±0.54 µV using the conventional and ultrasound-guided techniques, respectively. The SNAP amplitude of the LFCN using the ultrasound-guided technique was significantly larger than that recorded using the conventional technique.


CONCLUSIONS
Correcting the stimulation position using the ultrasound-guided technique helped obtain increased SNAP amplitude.
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Korea University Guro Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
Bum Jun
BJ
Park
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Korea University Guro Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
Eui Soo
ES
Joeng
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Korea University Guro Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
Jun Kyu
JK
Choi
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Korea University Guro Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
Seok
S
Kang
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Korea University Guro Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
Joon Shik
JS
Yoon
Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Korea University Guro Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
Seung Nam
SN
Yang
Lateral femoral cutaneous nerve; Lumbosacral plexus; Nerve conduction study; Ultrasonography; Ultrasound-guided