What is the Difference Between Innervated and Denervated Muscles?
🆚 Go to Comparative Table 🆚The main difference between innervated and denervated muscles lies in their nerve supply. Innervated muscles have a good supply of nerves, which enables them to function correctly. Denervated muscles, on the other hand, lack a nerve supply, resulting in a loss of muscular functionality.
Innervated muscles are characterized by:
- Nerves entering the muscle fibers, supplying and energizing them.
- All nerve fibers that supply the muscles being intact.
- Innervation through a single motor axon, with a few exceptions where more than one muscle can be innervated.
- Neurotransmitters carrying neurogenic signals towards the muscles.
Denervated muscles are characterized by:
- Loss of nerve supply, which could be due to a disorder or injury.
- Increased risk of infection and tissue dysfunction.
- Muscle weakness, wasting (atrophy), and fasciculations in muscles innervated by the nerve.
- Denervated muscles taking longer to respond to stimulation compared to innervated muscles.
In summary, innervated muscles have a good nerve supply and function properly, while denervated muscles lack a nerve supply and have lost their muscular functionality.
Comparative Table: Innervated vs Denervated Muscles
The main difference between innervated and denervated muscles depends on the supply of nerves. Innervated muscles have a good supply of nerves, allowing them to function properly, while denervated muscles lack a nerve supply, resulting in a loss of muscular functionality. Here is a table summarizing the differences between innervated and denervated muscles:
| Innervated Muscles | Denervated Muscles |
|---|---|
| Supplied with nerves, enabling proper functioning | Lack a nerve supply, leading to a loss of muscular functionality |
| Nerve supply is meditated through nervous coordination | Innervation loss can occur due to injury, post-surgery complications, or genetic disorders |
| Can exhibit muscle weakness, wasting (atrophy), and fasciculations | Denervation can lead to muscle weakness and wasting |
| Rheobase (minimum intensity of current required to stimulate a muscle at infinite duration) is lower for innervated muscles | Rheobase is higher for denervated muscles, making them harder to stimulate |
It is essential to note that some of the differences between innervated and denervated muscles are qualitative, and it cannot locate the site of the lesion, which limits their clinical utility. However, understanding these differences can help in detecting the magnitude of nerve damage and ascertaining the excitability of the nerve.
- Voluntary vs Involuntary Muscles
- Dermatome vs Cutaneous Innervation
- Muscle Cells vs Nerve Cells
- Sensory vs Motor Nerves
- Muscular Tissue vs Nervous Tissue
- Smooth Muscle vs Skeletal Muscle
- Striated Non Striated vs Cardiac Muscles
- Nerve Pain vs Muscle Pain
- Skeletal vs Smooth Muscle Contraction
- Synapse vs Neuromuscular Junction
- Aerobic vs Anaerobic Muscles
- Flexor vs Extensor Muscles
- Skeletal Muscle vs Cardiac Muscle
- Sensory vs Motor Neurons
- Abductor vs Adductor Muscles
- Nerve vs Neuron
- Pinched Nerve vs Pulled Muscle
- Motor Neuron Disease vs Muscular Dystrophy
- Muscle Tone vs Muscle Strength