Reference data for ulnar nerve short segment conduction studies at the elbow

Introduction: The aim of this study was to generate reference data for ulnar nerve short segment conduction studies (SSCSs) at 2‐cm intervals. Methods: Ulnar nerve SSCS data were collected from dominant and non‐dominant arms of 200 healthy volunteers. The effects of age, gender, weight, height, and body mass index (BMI) on SSCSs were also investigated. Results: High percentile values for short segment latency changes varied from 0.4 to 0.7 ms. Ulnar nerve conductions were slower in the segments 2 cm below and above the elbow compared with the other segments. The amplitude was found not to decrease by >15% in subsequent short segments. There were no significant effects of age and gender on the SSCS parameters. Conductions over the short segments tended to be faster as BMI increased. Conclusions: Reference values should be determined separately over each 2‐cm segment, and the effect of BMI should be considered when interpreting SSCSs. Muscle Nerve, 2011