We have done therapeutic exercises for a 24-year female patient with contracture of a flexed elbow joint because of long term fixation after right supracondylar fracture. After exercising, the Range Of Motion (ROM) of the elbow joint was improved but she complained chiefly that she could not perform coodinate activities with the upper extremity on the affected side in Activities of Daily Living (ADL). We recorded the muscular activities on both biceps brachii muscles and triceps brachii muscles both by means of surface electromyography. We observed that these muscular activities on the affected side were delayed compared with those of the sound side; so we started both to switch of motion exercises and of ROM exercises for the elbow joint. As a result, delayed muscular activity on the affected side came to have a similar pattern to those on the sound side about 4 months after beginning the exercises. Further more, she could perform coodinate activities of the upper extremity on the affected side in ADL. These results suggest that it is important to analyze assessment and effect when doing therapeutic exercises with surface electromyography.
