EMG and nerve testing are two parts of one appointment. Nerve conduction studies send small pulses through the skin to measure how signals travel along nerves. Electromyography uses a fine needle to record muscle activity. Together they show where a problem is.
EMG and nerve testing are two parts of one appointment. Nerve conduction studies send small pulses through the skin to measure how signals travel along nerves. Electromyography uses a fine needle to record muscle activity. Together they show where a problem is.
If you have been told you need an EMG, or nerve testing, or a nerve conduction study, these usually refer to the same appointment. It has two halves performed back to back. The first uses sticky electrodes and brief electrical pulses to check how well and how fast signals travel along specific nerves. The second uses a thin needle placed into selected muscles to listen to their electrical activity at rest and when you gently tense them.
The purpose is localisation. Symptoms such as numbness, tingling, burning or weakness in a hand can arise from a nerve compressed at the wrist, a nerve root irritated in the neck, a generalised neuropathy affecting many nerves, or a problem in the muscle itself. Those four are treated completely differently and can feel identical from the outside. This is the test that distinguishes them, and it also grades how severe the problem is and gives a sense of how long it has been present.
It is uncomfortable rather than painful for most people. The pulses feel like a tap or brief cramp and stop instantly. The needle produces a short sting and an ache when you tense the muscle. There is no sedation and no recovery period, so you drive yourself home. Mild soreness for a day afterwards is common. At CNS the neurologist who ordered the study performs and interprets it, in laboratories holding AANEM accreditation at both offices.
Clinical Neurology Specialists has been physician-owned since 1998, when Leo Germin, M.D., FAANEM founded it. Five board-certified neurologists and four advanced practice providers see patients at the Las Vegas and Henderson offices, each with its own AANEM-accredited electrodiagnostic laboratory.
Clinical Neurology Specialists is an adult outpatient neurology practice for patients 18 and older. The practice performs no surgery and operates no imaging suite, infusion suite or interventional pain programme, and provides no emergency or inpatient care.
Physician-reviewed. Reviewed by the physicians of Clinical Neurology Specialists — board-certified neurologists, AANEM-accredited electrodiagnostic laboratories, physician-owned since 1998. Reviewed 1 August 2026. This article is general education for adults 18 and older and is not a substitute for a consultation.
Adults 18 and older, at the Las Vegas and Henderson offices. Call 702-804-1212 or request an appointment online.