Expiratory activity in transferred intercostal nerves in brachial plexus injury patients.

Involuntary activity of transferred intercostal motor units was examined in patients with brachial plexus injury. Since the internal intercostal nerves were detached from the thorax to reinnervate the musculus biceps brachii, it was possible to record pure intercostal motor activity in humans. Respiratory activity was seen in the latter part of the expiratory phase, thus dividing the phase into two substages (E1 and E2) by the onset of the activity. CO2 rebreathing prolonged the duration of the intercostal motor activity and increased the tidal activity as determined from the integration curve. There was a close linear correlation between these two variables. These observations indicate that expiratory activity and its duration are actively controlled in humans.