Physiology‐Based Stretchable Electronics Design Method for Accurate Surface Electromyography Evaluation

Abstract Stretchable electronics‐based surface electromyography (sEMG) evaluation devices are expected to play a big role in clinical diagnosis. However, the stability and quality of the signals collected by existing stretchable electronics are too poor, especially when muscle movement is involved, making them inappropriate for high standard clinical diagnosis. Here, a physiology‐based design method for stretchable electronics and a novel airbag‐type stretchable electrode array (ASEA) device for assessment of the complex female pelvic floor muscle (PFM) is proposed. Clinical trials show that the ASEA device is able to provide stable contact interface and multi‐channel accurate data acquisition. The stability and quality of the sEMG signal are much better than those obtained by the existing stretchable electronics‐based PFM electrode devices. Furthermore, a muscle‐unit evaluation method (MUEM) to assess the PFM complex state is proposed, especially its cross‐interaction between muscles. Clinical trials show that MUEM can accurately and comprehensively assess PFM state and the correlations between main muscles, which unveils the mechanisms of some special muscle states that are not possible using traditional methods. This proof of concept research holds the promise for the development of new diagnostic strategies for muscle pathological research, and has the potential for clinical application and general implication.