Dear colleagues,

The term neuromuscular dysfunction refers to a whole series of alterations in the chain of events that begins with the activation at the cortical level of the motor areas responsible for carrying out movements and ends at the musculoskeletal level with the production of force and the consequent movement development. Possible perturbations in one of these fundamental passages, whether at a central or peripheral level, can lead to an alteration in the generation of the force of a single muscle and to a perturbation of the delicate mechanisms of regulation of the movement itself. Causes of such perturbations can be both physiological (just think of the adaptation mechanisms linked to aging) and pathological, as a common final route of pathologies with different etiological basis, and affecting different systems, e.g., musculoskeletal, neurological, cardiorespiratory, and endocrine.

In recent years, the arrival of new technologies (such as high-density surface electromyography, mechanomyography, transcranial and nerve stimulation, share wave elastography, high frame rate ultrasound, etc.) has made it possible to evaluate in vivo with ever more precision and clarity what the mechanisms underlying some neuromuscular dysfunctions may be, integrating this information with that obtained about the isolated muscle, on the single-fiber or the single-cell. All this has allowed ever-greater integration of information, which has led both to a greater understanding of the phenomenon and, from an applicative point of view, to an increasingly targeted choice of intervention.

With this in mind, this Special Issue will collect original studies that evaluate the deficit at the neuromuscular level through a translational approach, which integrates information from a level of the single fiber or cell up to the study. of the neuromuscular system in vivo. Original research or reviews that address issues related to neuromuscular deficit as a consequence of physiological phenomena (e.g., in the elderly, conditions of microgravity, bed rest) are all welcome.

Dr. Emiliano Ce
Guest Editor

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• Aging
• Bed rest
• Microgravity
• Disuse
• Neuromuscular dysfunction: muscle-skeletal system
• Neuromuscular dysfunction: cardiorespiratory system
• Neuromuscular dysfunction: endocrine system
• Neuromuscular dysfunction: neurological system