Effect of Neuromuscular Electrostimulation on Sympathetic Nerve Activity in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes (ELECTROSYMP2)

Overview

Physical activity (PA) is recommended for the treatment of subjects with type 2 diabetes to increase insulin sensitivity and improve metabolic control. However, adherence to PA is often poor, due to a lack of motivation or due to disabling complications or comorbidities. Neuromuscular electrostimulation (NMES) is a physical treatment commonly used to improve muscle strength and volume in several situations: after stroke, after limb trauma or during chest rehabilitation in deconditioned patients. The investigators have already shown in a first pilot study (manuscript in preparation) that NMES improves insulin sensitivity : in the study ELECTRODIAB (No. ID-RCB: 2011-A00930-41), the investigators showed a 25% insulin sensitivity improvement after a week of daily 25-min bi-quadricipital NMES session, in a population of patients with orally-treated type 2 diabetes. Insulin sensitivity increased up to 50% in the most deconditioned subjects. Discrepancy between this result and the very low energy expenditure measured during sessions suggests that the metabolic effect was not solely mediated by muscle contractions. The investigators hypothesize the involvement of neurological pathways. Indeed, it is demonstrated that the autonomic nervous system is an important regulator of glucose metabolism with pancreatic action, a key role in energy metabolism and a complex relationship with insulin resistance. Muscle activity, whether static (isometric) or dynamic causes changes in sympathetic nerve activity in healthy subjects but its effect in type 2 diabetic subjects is not known. The investigators hypothesize that, in type 2 diabetic subjects, the modulation of sympathetic nerve activity by NMES could be involved in the improvement of insulin sensitivity. To address this question, the investigators propose to assess sympathetic nerve activity with the gold standard method of microneurography before and after a single bi-quadricipital NMES session. The impact of neuro-electro-stimulation (NES) (a sensitive stimulation under muscular threshold) and the impact of voluntary isometric muscle contractions (VC) will also be evaluated. These procedures will also be applied in healthy control subjects.