The nerve conduction study stimulates specific nerves and records their ability to send the impulse to the muscle. The study can show where there is a blockage of the nerve pathway. A nerve conduction velocity (NCV) test is used to assess nerve damage and dysfunction. This procedure measures how quickly electrical signals move through your peripheral nerves.
The NVC test helps your doctor differentiate between an injury to the nerve fiber and an injury to the myelin sheath, the protective covering surrounding the nerve. It can also help your doctor tell the difference between a nerve disorder and a condition where a nerve injury has affected the muscles.
An NCV test can be used to diagnose a number of muscular and neuromuscular disorders, including:
- Guillain-Barre syndrome
- carpal tunnel syndrome
- Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease
- herniated disk disease
- chronic inflammatory polyneuropathy and neuropathy
- sciatic nerve problems
- peripheral nerve injury
Making these distinctions is important for proper diagnosis and determining your course of treatment.
