How to Prepare for Your EMG Test
- Please arrive at least 30 minutes before your appointment time and proceed to Patient Registration located in the main lobby at University Hospital.
- If you have been a patient at London Health Sciences Centre before, you will have been given a blue card with your name and patient identification number on it. Please bring this blue card with you. If you have not been given a blue card before, or if you have lost yours, you will be given a new one at Patient Registration.
- After you arrive in the EMG lab, we may ask you to put on a hospital gown for the test. This will depend on the nature of your problem and the part of your body which needs to be tested. Wear loose clothing that is easy to remove. DO NOT wear long underwear or pantyhose.
- Please remove all jewelry prior to your appointment, except for MedicAlert bracelets.
- Please bathe on the day of your appointment. Do not use any skin lotions or moisturizing creams unless they are medically necessary, as they will interfere with the test.
- Please bring a list of all your current medications and their dosages. Your pharmacist can likely provide you with such a list.
- In most cases there is no need to stop taking your medication for this test; however, please check with your referring physician prior to your examination.
- Please inform us prior to testing if you have a history of infections such as Hepatitis B or C, HIV or antibiotic resistant pathogens such as MRSA, C. Difficile or VRE.
- Please inform us prior to testing if you are taking any blood-thinning medications such as coumadin or warfarin, and if possible, your most recent INR or PTT values.
- Please inform us prior to testing if you have a cardiac pacemaker, or if you have had seizures or epilepsy. In most cases this will not affect your studies, however, this will help us to choose the appropriate test protocol to answer your physician's question.
- Eating or drinking beforehand will not interfere with the testing.
- Depending on the nature of your problem the test may take from one to three hours to complete. Please use the washroom before your test.
