The application of NMES to stimulate active motion, strengthen muscles, and prevent atrophy describes which therapy?

• A. NMES
• B. FES
• C. IFT
• D. TENS

Answer: (A)

The key idea is using electrical stimulation to cause a muscle to contract, enabling movement and supporting muscle health when a person can’t fully activate the muscle voluntarily. Neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) applies current to a muscle or group to depolarize the motor nerves and elicit a contraction. This helps the person perform active motion during rehab, strengthens the muscle, and counteracts disuse atrophy that happens with immobilization or neurological injury.

TENS and interferential therapy are mainly used for pain relief or tissue healing, not to drive meaningful muscle contractions for strengthening. Functional electrical stimulation is a related approach that uses stimulation to enable functional tasks (like grasp or foot clearance), but the description here emphasizes strengthening and preventing atrophy through muscle activation, which aligns with NMES.