1. < Neuropathy

Is an EMG (electromyography) painful?

Posted by wisfloj @wisfloj, Jun 16, 2020

I canceled my EMG appointment because I was 'chicken'. They called me to reschedule and I’m on the fence here. So veterans.... How bad is it?
I’ve had a nerve conduction study and that was tolerable. Thank you for sharing your experience/thoughts.

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jedge54 | @jedge54 | Apr 22 3:18pm

Correction: “as the shock part of the test progresses it can be very uncomfortable “

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proteusx | @proteusx | Apr 22 7:34pm

Somewhat painful but light years less so than those conducted a few decades ago. EMGs, however, rarely lead to anything productively actionable and do virtually nothing to detect/analyze small fiber neuropathies. For the latter you would require very small skin biopsies. If you opt for a skin biopsy, however, make sure that the samples are sent to one of the few laboratories that actually have the ability to properly analyze them, e.g. Johns Hopkins, Mass General, Cleveland clinic.

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detc | @detc | Apr 23 7:57am

A possible suggestion for those scheduling an EMG test.
I have very little body fat which allowed my neurologist to use finer needles for the test. I was grateful for her consideration and felt very little discomfort. I have minimal pain tolerance in most situations so I was anxious going in for the test. I believe that the needle choice made all the difference. Perhaps this is something that you could discuss with your doctor prior to the testing.

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michael308 | @michael308 | Apr 24 2:34am
In reply to @cmlk "It depends on each person’s pain tolerance. I have little tolerance to pain unfortunately. No one..." + (show)
@cmlk

It depends on each person’s pain tolerance. I have little tolerance to pain unfortunately.
No one warned me how painful the EMG test would be when I had it done in 2023. I strongly recommend talking to your doctor about taking pain medication beforehand. During the test, I screamed and cried every time the doctor inserted the long needle into my muscles, it was excruciating. The pain was so intense that the test couldn’t be completed fully.
According to the doctor who performed it, the partial results were probably acceptable. But I still wonder if my diagnosis was ever fully determined because of the incomplete test.
I have continued experiencing numbness and tingling in my feet and the lower part of my legs. When my circulation gets bad, my left hand also goes numb. This all started after I experienced an intense, 45-minute episode of cramping in my legs and feet following a bike ride.
If you’re facing an EMG, I wish you the best and please prepare yourself. I wish someone had told me what to expect.

Jump to this post

I have and EMG every year. They are not done with needles into the muscle, my specialist put the tape pads of the sking area that they want to test and send a small electric current into the muscle for less that 1 second and then they move onto the next muscle. It can be uncomfortable for about half a second as he increases the current a hits the muscle again, but it is very short duration. Very tolerable.

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chrismay24 | @cmlk | Apr 24 6:56pm
In reply to @cmlk "It depends on each person’s pain tolerance. I have little tolerance to pain unfortunately. No one..." + (show)
@cmlk

It depends on each person’s pain tolerance. I have little tolerance to pain unfortunately.
No one warned me how painful the EMG test would be when I had it done in 2023. I strongly recommend talking to your doctor about taking pain medication beforehand. During the test, I screamed and cried every time the doctor inserted the long needle into my muscles, it was excruciating. The pain was so intense that the test couldn’t be completed fully.
According to the doctor who performed it, the partial results were probably acceptable. But I still wonder if my diagnosis was ever fully determined because of the incomplete test.
I have continued experiencing numbness and tingling in my feet and the lower part of my legs. When my circulation gets bad, my left hand also goes numb. This all started after I experienced an intense, 45-minute episode of cramping in my legs and feet following a bike ride.
If you’re facing an EMG, I wish you the best and please prepare yourself. I wish someone had told me what to expect.

Jump to this post

I’ve also had the nerve conduction study done on my legs besides the EMG, and that part uses electrodes on the skin, not needles which was more tolerable.

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