Dynamic Surface Electromyography (sEMG) measures the electrical activity that muscles exhibit when in use. It is an objective diagnostic tool that allows us to visualize and objectively quantify muscle spasm in the neck and back. With this technology, the muscular component of a soft tissue injury can be documented thus enabling one to go beyond subjective patient and doctor reports.

Similar to an electrocardiogram (ECG) which measures heart activity, dynamic SEMG measures paraspinal muscle activity (those on either side of the spine). Utilizing adhesive surface electrodes and by having the individual move through a range of motion, normal or abnormal muscle activity can be determined. Dynamic SEMG can determine the extent of muscle hypertonicity and dysfunction. This aids the practitioner in developing an accurate course of rehabilitation.

Like a video camera, the Dynamic sEMG watches the spinal muscles as they move.

If the Static sEMG test discussed in the previous section was described as a "picture" of how the muscles respond to the vertebral subluxation, the Dynamic sEMG test would be best described as a "video".

By placing adhesive electrode pads on the region being tested, neck or lower back, the doctor has the patient repetitively bend and turn as the computer measures, in real time, the muscle firing patterns. Because of the abundance of research on this device, we know what "normal" looks like — and, conversely, what it doesn’t look like.

By knowing what patterns are characteristic of pain and dysfunction brought about by injury, this dynamic sEMG "tool" of the MyoVision System is particularly suited for documenting and managing patients that have been involved in automobile accidents.