The Effects of Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) towards Male Skeletal Muscle Mass
Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) has been
introduced and globally gained increasing attention on its usefulness.
Continuous application of EMS may lead to the increment of muscle
mass and indirectly will increase the strength. This study can be used
as an alternative to help people especially those living a sedentary
lifestyle to improve their muscle activity without having to go
through a heavy workout session. Therefore, this study intended to
investigate the effectiveness of EMS training program in 5 weeks
interventions towards male body composition. It was a quasiexperimental
design, held at the Impulse Studio Bangsar, which
examined the effects of EMS training towards skeletal muscle mass
among the subjects. Fifteen subjects (n = 15) were selected to assist
in this study. The demographic data showed that, the average age of
the subjects was 43.07 years old ± 9.90, height (173.4 cm ± 9.09) and
weight was (85.79 kg ± 18.07). Results showed that there was a
significant difference on the skeletal muscle mass (p = 0.01 < 0.05),
upper body (p = 0.01 < 0.05) and lower body (p = 0.00 < 0.05).
Therefore, the null hypothesis has been rejected in this study. As a
conclusion, the application of EMS towards body composition can
increase the muscle size and strength. This method has been proven
to be able to improve athlete strength and thus, may be implemented
in the sports science area of knowledge.
[1] Ahlborn, P., Schachner, M. and Irintchev, A. (2007). One hour electrical
stimulation accelerates functional recovery after femoral nerve repair.
Experimental Neurology 208 (2007) 137–144.
[2] Aldayel, A., Jubeau, M., McGuigan, M., & Nosaka, K. (2010).
Comparison between alternating and pulsed current electrical muscle
stimulation for muscle and systemic acute responses. J Appl Physiol
109: 735–744.
[3] Amer. S (2006). Garment for electrical muscle stimulation of muscles in
the upper body and arms and legs. Retrieved November 4 2015 from
https://www.google.com/patents/US20060247733
[4] Anderson, A., Murphy, M., Murtagh, E., & Nevill, A. (2006). An 8-
week randomized controlled trial on the effects of brisk walking, and
brisk walking with abdominal electrical muscle stimulation on
anthropometric, body composition, and self-perception measures in
sedentary adult women. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 7(5), 437-
451.
[5] Baumgartner, T. A. (2012) Conducting and reading research in
kinesiology. 5th edn. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
[6] Bogaerts, C., G., Delecluse, C., Claessens, A., L., Troosters, T., Boonen,
S. and Verschueren, S., M., P. (2009). Effects of whole body vibration training on cardiorespiratory fitness and muscle strength in older
individuals (a 1-year randomized controlled trial). Age and Ageing
2009; 38: 448–454.
[7] Cale, J., Timothy L., U., Matt, S., Wes, S., & Larry, G. (2005). Strength
and Fatigability of the Dominant and Nondominant Hip Abductors.
Journal of Athletic Training 2005; 40 (3):203–206.
[8] Gerovasili, V., Stefanidis, K., Vitzilaios, K., Karatzanos, E., Politis, P.,
Koroneos, A., Chatzimichail, A., Routsi, C., Roussos. C. and Nanas. S.
(2009). Electrical muscle stimulation preserves the muscle mass of
critically ill patients: A randomized study. Critical Care 2009, 13:R161.
[9] Gerovasili, V., Tripodaki, E., Karatzanos, E., Pitsolis, T., Markaki, V.,
Zervakis, D., Routsi, C., Roussos, C. and Nanas, S. (2009). Short-term
systemic effect of electrical muscle stimulation in critically ill patients.
CHEST 2009; 136:1249 –1256.
[10] Goodpaster, B., Park, S., Harris, T., Kritchevsky, S., Nevitt, M., &
Schwartz, A. et al. (2006). The Loss of Skeletal Muscle Strength, Mass,
and Quality in Older Adults: The Health, Aging and Body Composition
Study. The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and
Medical Sciences, 61(10), 1059-1064.
[11] Habr, G., B., Rochester, C., L., Palermo, F., Snyder, P. and Mohsenin,
V. (2002). Randomised controlled trial of transcutaneous electrical
muscle stimulation of the lower extremities in patients with chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease. Thorax 2002; 57:1045–1049.
[12] Iwasaki, T., Shiba, N., Matsuse, H., Nago, T., Umezu, Y., Tagawa, Y.,
Nagata, K. and Basford, J., R. (2006). Improvement in knee extension
strength through training by means of combined electrical stimulation
and voluntary muscle contraction. Tohoku J. Exp. Med., 2006, 209, 33-
40.
[13] Kemmler, W., Schliffka, R., Mayhew, J., & von Stengel, S. (2010).
Effects of Whole-Body Electromyostimulation on Resting Metabolic
Rate, Body Composition, and Maximum Strength in Postmenopausal
Women: the Training and ElectroStimulation Trial. Journal of Strength
and Conditioning Research, 24(7), 1880-1887.
[14] Kim, K., M., Croy, T., Hertel, J. and Saliba, S. (2009). Effects of
neuromuscular electrical stimulation after anterior cruciate ligament
reconstruction on quadriceps strength, function, and patient-oriented
outcomes: A systematic review. Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports
Physical Therapy 2010; 40 (7): 383-391.
[15] Petrofsky, J., S. (2004). Electrical Stimulation: Neurophysiological Basis
and Application. Basic Appl Myol 14(4): 205-213.
[16] Porcari, J., McLean, K., Foster, C., Kernozek, T., Crenshaw, B., &
Swenson, C. (2002). Effects of Electrical Muscle Stimulation on Body
Composition, Muscle Strength, and [Physical Appearance. J Strength
Cond Res, 16(2), 165.
[17] Quittan, M., Wiesinger, G., F., Sturm, B., Puig, S., Mayr, W., Sochor,
A., Paternostro, T., Resch, K., L., Pacher, R. and Fialka-Moser, V.
(2001). Improvement of thigh muscles by neuromuscular electrical
stimulation in patients with refractory heart failure: A single-blind,
randomized, controlled trial. Am. J. Phys. Med. Rehabil. 2001; 80 (3):
206-214.
[18] Rampal, L., Rampal, S., Khor, G., L., Zain, A., M., Ooyub, S., Rahmat,
R., Ghani, S., N. and Krishnan, J. (2007). A national study on the
prevalence of obesity among 16,127 Malaysians. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr
2007; 16 (3):561-566.
[19] Rodriguez, P., O., Setten, M., Maskin, L., P., Bonelli, I., Vidomlansky,
S., R., Attie, S., Frosiani, S., L., Kozima, S. and Valentini, R. (2012).
Muscle weakness in septic patients requiring mechanical ventilation:
Protective effect of transcutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation.
Journal of Critical Care (2012) 27, 319.e1–319.e8.
[20] Routsi, C., Gerovasili, V., Vasileiadis, I., Karatzanos, E., Pitsolis, T.,
Tripodaki, E., Markaki, V., Zervakis, D. and Nanas, S. (2010). Research
Electrical muscle stimulation prevents critical illness
polyneuromyopathy: A randomized parallel intervention trial. Critical
Care 2010, 14:R74.
[21] Sachdev, H., S., Fall, C., H., D., Osmond, C., Lakshmy, R., Biswas, S.,
K., D., Leary, S., D., Reddy, K., S., Barker, D., J., P. and Bhargava, S.,
K. (2005). Anthropometric indicators of body composition in young
adults: Relation to size at birth and serial measurements of body mass
index in childhood in the New Delhi birth cohort. Am J Clin Nutr 2005;
82:456 – 466.
[22] Sharma, P., Lehri, A. & Verma, S.K. (2011). Effect of Electrical Muscle
Stimulation on Reducing Fat from the Body. Journal of Exercise Science
and Physiotherapy, Vol. 7, No. 1: 24-28.
[23] Sillen, M., J., H., Speksnijder, C., M., Eterman, R., M., A., Janssen, P.,
P., Wagers, S., S., Wouters, E., F., M., Lencer, N., H., M., K., U. and Spruit, M., A. (2009). Effects of neuromuscular electrical stimulation of
muscles of ambulation in patients with chronic heart failure or COPD.
CHEST 2009; 136 (1):44 –61.
[24] Speicher, U., Nowak, S., Schmithüsen, J., Kleinöder, H., Mester. (2008).
Long- and short- term training results through mechanical and Electro
Muscle Stimulation (EMS) based on strength parameters. German Sport
University Cologne 2008; published inter alia in BISp yearbook–
research publication 2008/09).
[25] Vanderthommen, M. and Duchateau, J. (2007). Electrical stimulation as
a modality to improve performance of the neuromuscular system.
Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews 2007; 35(4):180-185.
[26] Vatter, J. Universität Bayreuth, Electro Muscle Stimulation (EMS) as a
full body training – Multi-fitness centre study (2003). Publication AVMVerlag
München.
[27] Walls, R., J., McHugh, G., O’Gorman, D., J., Moyna, N., M. and
O’Byrne, J., M. (2010). Effects of preoperative neuromuscular electrical
stimulation on quadriceps strength and functional recovery in total knee
arthroplasty: A pilot study. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders 2010,
11:119.
[28] World Health Organization - Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity
and Health (2003). Obesity and Overweight. Retrieved at November, 4,
2015 from
http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/media/en/gsfs_obesity.pdf
[1] Ahlborn, P., Schachner, M. and Irintchev, A. (2007). One hour electrical
stimulation accelerates functional recovery after femoral nerve repair.
Experimental Neurology 208 (2007) 137–144.
[2] Aldayel, A., Jubeau, M., McGuigan, M., & Nosaka, K. (2010).
Comparison between alternating and pulsed current electrical muscle
stimulation for muscle and systemic acute responses. J Appl Physiol
109: 735–744.
[3] Amer. S (2006). Garment for electrical muscle stimulation of muscles in
the upper body and arms and legs. Retrieved November 4 2015 from
https://www.google.com/patents/US20060247733
[4] Anderson, A., Murphy, M., Murtagh, E., & Nevill, A. (2006). An 8-
week randomized controlled trial on the effects of brisk walking, and
brisk walking with abdominal electrical muscle stimulation on
anthropometric, body composition, and self-perception measures in
sedentary adult women. Psychology of Sport and Exercise, 7(5), 437-
451.
[5] Baumgartner, T. A. (2012) Conducting and reading research in
kinesiology. 5th edn. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
[6] Bogaerts, C., G., Delecluse, C., Claessens, A., L., Troosters, T., Boonen,
S. and Verschueren, S., M., P. (2009). Effects of whole body vibration training on cardiorespiratory fitness and muscle strength in older
individuals (a 1-year randomized controlled trial). Age and Ageing
2009; 38: 448–454.
[7] Cale, J., Timothy L., U., Matt, S., Wes, S., & Larry, G. (2005). Strength
and Fatigability of the Dominant and Nondominant Hip Abductors.
Journal of Athletic Training 2005; 40 (3):203–206.
[8] Gerovasili, V., Stefanidis, K., Vitzilaios, K., Karatzanos, E., Politis, P.,
Koroneos, A., Chatzimichail, A., Routsi, C., Roussos. C. and Nanas. S.
(2009). Electrical muscle stimulation preserves the muscle mass of
critically ill patients: A randomized study. Critical Care 2009, 13:R161.
[9] Gerovasili, V., Tripodaki, E., Karatzanos, E., Pitsolis, T., Markaki, V.,
Zervakis, D., Routsi, C., Roussos, C. and Nanas, S. (2009). Short-term
systemic effect of electrical muscle stimulation in critically ill patients.
CHEST 2009; 136:1249 –1256.
[10] Goodpaster, B., Park, S., Harris, T., Kritchevsky, S., Nevitt, M., &
Schwartz, A. et al. (2006). The Loss of Skeletal Muscle Strength, Mass,
and Quality in Older Adults: The Health, Aging and Body Composition
Study. The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and
Medical Sciences, 61(10), 1059-1064.
[11] Habr, G., B., Rochester, C., L., Palermo, F., Snyder, P. and Mohsenin,
V. (2002). Randomised controlled trial of transcutaneous electrical
muscle stimulation of the lower extremities in patients with chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease. Thorax 2002; 57:1045–1049.
[12] Iwasaki, T., Shiba, N., Matsuse, H., Nago, T., Umezu, Y., Tagawa, Y.,
Nagata, K. and Basford, J., R. (2006). Improvement in knee extension
strength through training by means of combined electrical stimulation
and voluntary muscle contraction. Tohoku J. Exp. Med., 2006, 209, 33-
40.
[13] Kemmler, W., Schliffka, R., Mayhew, J., & von Stengel, S. (2010).
Effects of Whole-Body Electromyostimulation on Resting Metabolic
Rate, Body Composition, and Maximum Strength in Postmenopausal
Women: the Training and ElectroStimulation Trial. Journal of Strength
and Conditioning Research, 24(7), 1880-1887.
[14] Kim, K., M., Croy, T., Hertel, J. and Saliba, S. (2009). Effects of
neuromuscular electrical stimulation after anterior cruciate ligament
reconstruction on quadriceps strength, function, and patient-oriented
outcomes: A systematic review. Journal of Orthopaedic & Sports
Physical Therapy 2010; 40 (7): 383-391.
[15] Petrofsky, J., S. (2004). Electrical Stimulation: Neurophysiological Basis
and Application. Basic Appl Myol 14(4): 205-213.
[16] Porcari, J., McLean, K., Foster, C., Kernozek, T., Crenshaw, B., &
Swenson, C. (2002). Effects of Electrical Muscle Stimulation on Body
Composition, Muscle Strength, and [Physical Appearance. J Strength
Cond Res, 16(2), 165.
[17] Quittan, M., Wiesinger, G., F., Sturm, B., Puig, S., Mayr, W., Sochor,
A., Paternostro, T., Resch, K., L., Pacher, R. and Fialka-Moser, V.
(2001). Improvement of thigh muscles by neuromuscular electrical
stimulation in patients with refractory heart failure: A single-blind,
randomized, controlled trial. Am. J. Phys. Med. Rehabil. 2001; 80 (3):
206-214.
[18] Rampal, L., Rampal, S., Khor, G., L., Zain, A., M., Ooyub, S., Rahmat,
R., Ghani, S., N. and Krishnan, J. (2007). A national study on the
prevalence of obesity among 16,127 Malaysians. Asia Pac J Clin Nutr
2007; 16 (3):561-566.
[19] Rodriguez, P., O., Setten, M., Maskin, L., P., Bonelli, I., Vidomlansky,
S., R., Attie, S., Frosiani, S., L., Kozima, S. and Valentini, R. (2012).
Muscle weakness in septic patients requiring mechanical ventilation:
Protective effect of transcutaneous neuromuscular electrical stimulation.
Journal of Critical Care (2012) 27, 319.e1–319.e8.
[20] Routsi, C., Gerovasili, V., Vasileiadis, I., Karatzanos, E., Pitsolis, T.,
Tripodaki, E., Markaki, V., Zervakis, D. and Nanas, S. (2010). Research
Electrical muscle stimulation prevents critical illness
polyneuromyopathy: A randomized parallel intervention trial. Critical
Care 2010, 14:R74.
[21] Sachdev, H., S., Fall, C., H., D., Osmond, C., Lakshmy, R., Biswas, S.,
K., D., Leary, S., D., Reddy, K., S., Barker, D., J., P. and Bhargava, S.,
K. (2005). Anthropometric indicators of body composition in young
adults: Relation to size at birth and serial measurements of body mass
index in childhood in the New Delhi birth cohort. Am J Clin Nutr 2005;
82:456 – 466.
[22] Sharma, P., Lehri, A. & Verma, S.K. (2011). Effect of Electrical Muscle
Stimulation on Reducing Fat from the Body. Journal of Exercise Science
and Physiotherapy, Vol. 7, No. 1: 24-28.
[23] Sillen, M., J., H., Speksnijder, C., M., Eterman, R., M., A., Janssen, P.,
P., Wagers, S., S., Wouters, E., F., M., Lencer, N., H., M., K., U. and Spruit, M., A. (2009). Effects of neuromuscular electrical stimulation of
muscles of ambulation in patients with chronic heart failure or COPD.
CHEST 2009; 136 (1):44 –61.
[24] Speicher, U., Nowak, S., Schmithüsen, J., Kleinöder, H., Mester. (2008).
Long- and short- term training results through mechanical and Electro
Muscle Stimulation (EMS) based on strength parameters. German Sport
University Cologne 2008; published inter alia in BISp yearbook–
research publication 2008/09).
[25] Vanderthommen, M. and Duchateau, J. (2007). Electrical stimulation as
a modality to improve performance of the neuromuscular system.
Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews 2007; 35(4):180-185.
[26] Vatter, J. Universität Bayreuth, Electro Muscle Stimulation (EMS) as a
full body training – Multi-fitness centre study (2003). Publication AVMVerlag
München.
[27] Walls, R., J., McHugh, G., O’Gorman, D., J., Moyna, N., M. and
O’Byrne, J., M. (2010). Effects of preoperative neuromuscular electrical
stimulation on quadriceps strength and functional recovery in total knee
arthroplasty: A pilot study. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders 2010,
11:119.
[28] World Health Organization - Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity
and Health (2003). Obesity and Overweight. Retrieved at November, 4,
2015 from
http://www.who.int/dietphysicalactivity/media/en/gsfs_obesity.pdf
@article{"International Journal of Medical, Medicine and Health Sciences:71412", author = "Mohd Faridz Ahmad and Amirul Hakim Hasbullah", title = "The Effects of Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) towards Male Skeletal Muscle Mass", abstract = "Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) has been
introduced and globally gained increasing attention on its usefulness.
Continuous application of EMS may lead to the increment of muscle
mass and indirectly will increase the strength. This study can be used
as an alternative to help people especially those living a sedentary
lifestyle to improve their muscle activity without having to go
through a heavy workout session. Therefore, this study intended to
investigate the effectiveness of EMS training program in 5 weeks
interventions towards male body composition. It was a quasiexperimental
design, held at the Impulse Studio Bangsar, which
examined the effects of EMS training towards skeletal muscle mass
among the subjects. Fifteen subjects (n = 15) were selected to assist
in this study. The demographic data showed that, the average age of
the subjects was 43.07 years old ± 9.90, height (173.4 cm ± 9.09) and
weight was (85.79 kg ± 18.07). Results showed that there was a
significant difference on the skeletal muscle mass (p = 0.01 < 0.05),
upper body (p = 0.01 < 0.05) and lower body (p = 0.00 < 0.05).
Therefore, the null hypothesis has been rejected in this study. As a
conclusion, the application of EMS towards body composition can
increase the muscle size and strength. This method has been proven
to be able to improve athlete strength and thus, may be implemented
in the sports science area of knowledge.
", keywords = "Body composition, EMS, skeletal muscle mass,
strength.", volume = "9", number = "12", pages = "813-10", }
