A Probabilistic Approach to Assess Activity during Dynamic Eccentric and Concentric Contractions

Purpose of this work is to present a probabilistic approach to assess the muscular activity during eccentric and concentric contractions in specific joint angle positions out of series of movements. The method is utilized to exemplarily retrieve an individualized relationship of surface electromyogram (sEMG) and elbow joint angle in elbow flexion during dynamic movements to finally show the differences in the muscular activation patterns. The setup includes series of elbow flexion movements, which are performed in a motion analysis lab. Through a probabilistic approach, the most probable sEMG amplitude out of all trials is assigned to the elbow joint angles. The differences of concentric and eccentric contractions can be clearly observed from the sEMG results and so the contribution of the elbow flexor muscles during movement becomes clear.