OBJECTIVES: to evaluate the activity of the scalene and sternocleidomastoid muscles at the baseline and during the maximum inspiratory pressure maneuver (PImax) in children with asthma. METHODS: fifteen children were divided into an asthma (n=8) and a control group (n=7). Lung functioning was investigated and the PImax using spirometry and manovacometry respectively. The myoelectrical activity of the scalene and sternocleidomastoid muscles was measured using surface electromyography at the baseline and during the PImax maneuver. RESULTS: the baseline surface electromyography for the scalene muscle was greater in the asthma group than in the control. However, the base surface electromyography for the sternocleidomastoid muscles showed no statistically significant difference between the two groups. The percentage of electromyographs of the scalene muscles and the sternocleidomastoid muscles was higher in the asthma group than in the controls. CONCLUSIONS: the baseline electromyographs for scalene muscles is heightened in children with asthma. The electromyographic activity of the sternocleidomastoid muscles for the baseline was similar in both groups. The electromyographs for the sternocleidomastoid and scalene muscles on the generation of intrathoracic pressure, during the PImax maneuver give higher values among children with asthma.
Asthma; Child; Electromyography; Respiratory muscles; Respiratory function tests
