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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Neurosci.

Sec. Neuroprosthetics

Volume 19 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fnins.2025.1568212

Comparing Implantable Epimysial and Intramuscular Electrodes for Prosthetic Control

Provisionally accepted
  • 1Department of Orthopedics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States
  • 2Department of Electrical Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden
  • 3Center for Bionics and Pain Research, Department of Electrical Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg, Sweden
  • 4Bone-Anchored Limb Research Group, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States
  • 5Department of Orthopaedics, Institute of Clinical Sciences, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Mölndal, Sweden
  • 6Prometei Pain Rehabilitation Center, Vinnytsia, Ukraine
  • 7Center for Complex Endoprosthetics, Osseointegration, and Bionics, Kyiv, Ukraine

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

Implantable electrodes are the subject of increasing interest due to the possibilities they present for the control of assistive devices such as prosthetic limbs, however evidence as to whether epimysial or intramuscular electrodes result in better performance is lacking. In this retrospective study, we analyzed data collected from six users of a neuromusculoskeletal arm prosthesis who had been implanted with epimysial or intramuscular electrodes, two of whom were implanted with both electrode types, and compared electrical impedance and electromyographic feature space characteristics -all important qualities for the control of prosthetic arms and hands. Our results showed significantly greater cross-channel impedances for intramuscular electrodes suggesting improved isolation and reduced cross-talk, however this did not translate to significantly improved signal-to-noise ratio, separability, or repeatability. Sequential feedforward selection analysis may suggest that epimysial electrodes contribute greater signal separability when recording from larger muscles used for gross hand movements, whereas intramuscular electrodes contribute greater signal separability when recording from smaller muscles used for grasp prehension and finger movements, but additional study is required to confirm these findings. Our results provide preliminary understanding as to which electrodes should be used for which patients, which may help to guide clinical practice for future implementation of cutting-edge bionic arms.

Keywords: Implantable electrode, myoelectric control, Intramuscular, epimysial, prosthetics, neural interface

Received: 29 Jan 2025; Accepted: 19 May 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Earley, Kristoffersen and Ortiz-Catalan. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Eric J Earley, Department of Orthopedics, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, Aurora, United States

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.