A Xerotic Skin‐Compatible Neuromotor Electrode Interface for Non‐Invasive Muscle Weakness Evaluation in Dermatomyositis

Dermatomyositis creates a clinical demand for non-invasive, quantitative muscle weakness assessment, which can be achieved by decomposing neuromotor information from surface electromyography (sEMG). However, the absence of a stable electrode interface compatible with pathologically xerotic skin has hindered this approach. Here, we develop a conformable neuromotor electrode interface that overcomes this via molecular engineering, exhibiting an ultrasoft modulus (∼ 2.13 kPa), low impedance (∼ 0.9 kΩ at 1 kHz), and stable electrical retention over 7 days. This interface enables the acquisition of high-fidelity sEMG from dermatomyositis patients with low baseline noise (< 2 µV root mean square) and high inter-channel signal correlation, allowing robust decomposition of neuromotor biomarkers including motor unit count, action potential amplitude, and firing rate. Clinically, our multi-biomarker quantification strategy shows strong agreement with gold standard assessments. Moreover, our approach can detect subtle interpatient variations like early recruitment patterns, enabling personalized treatment beyond the clinical gold standard. This work establishes a transformative platform for precise muscle weakness evaluation, overcoming the limitations of needle electromyography and subjective clinical scales.

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Publication Details

Journal
Advanced Materials
Published
2026-06-29
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.73874
Primary Topic
Inflammatory Myopathies and Dermatomyositis
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

A Xerotic Skin‐Compatible Neuromotor Electrode Interface for Non‐Invasive Muscle Weakness Evaluation in Dermatomyositis

Xianzhe Chen, Xinzhi Xu, Qi Xu, Mengru Zhang et al.
Advanced Materials
Inflammatory Myopathies and Dermatomyositis
article

A Xerotic Skin‐Compatible Neuromotor Electrode Interface for Non‐Invasive Muscle Weakness Evaluation in Dermatomyositis

Xianzhe Chen, Xinzhi Xu, Qi Xu, Mengru Zhang, Junchang Wang, M Wang, Jingyi Chen, Jie Yang, Zhiwei Chen, Xumeng Zhang, Jie Yu, Cao, X Yang, D Yang, Yue Zhang, Yaqing Li
article en

Abstract

Dermatomyositis creates a clinical demand for non-invasive, quantitative muscle weakness assessment, which can be achieved by decomposing neuromotor information from surface electromyography (sEMG). However, the absence of a stable electrode interface compatible with pathologically xerotic skin has hindered this approach. Here, we develop a conformable neuromotor electrode interface that overcomes this via molecular engineering, exhibiting an ultrasoft modulus (∼ 2.13 kPa), low impedance (∼ 0.9 kΩ at 1 kHz), and stable electrical retention over 7 days. This interface enables the acquisition of high-fidelity sEMG from dermatomyositis patients with low baseline noise (< 2 µV root mean square) and high inter-channel signal correlation, allowing robust decomposition of neuromotor biomarkers including motor unit count, action potential amplitude, and firing rate. Clinically, our multi-biomarker quantification strategy shows strong agreement with gold standard assessments. Moreover, our approach can detect subtle interpatient variations like early recruitment patterns, enabling personalized treatment beyond the clinical gold standard. This work establishes a transformative platform for precise muscle weakness evaluation, overcoming the limitations of needle electromyography and subjective clinical scales.

Advanced Materials
Fudan University (CN), Institute of Microelectronics (CN), Zhongshan Hospital (CN), Huashan Hospital (CN)
National Natural Science Foundation of China, National Key Research and Development Program of China
Openalex Percentile: Top 7%
Inflammatory Myopathies and Dermatomyositis
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