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EXAM INFORMATION​

 

 

Training

Technologist trainees must strive to achieve a level of competency that enables them to perform a variety of nerve conduction studies on patients without contribution from another technologist or supervising electromyographer. The minimum 1,000 patient requirement is to be fulfilled after this level of competency is achieved.
Each candidate will be required to submit a declaration of training and employment including names and contact information of supervising technologists and physicians, and the number of patients seen independently. The supervising physician will be required to sign a declaration confirming this information. The registrar may contact the supervising physician or technologist to clarify any information submitted.

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Eligibility 

In order to participate in the examination, an individual must be a member of the AETC and must have completed a variety of unassisted nerve conduction studies on at least 1,000 patients.

Registration certificates can be revoked at any time if a candidate has misrepresented their credentials and made a fraudulent application.

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AETC Basic Workshop

A basic workshop on nerve conduction studies may be conducted by the AETC Education Committee prior to the registration examination. This will be held during the AETC Annual Conference if the meeting is scheduled prior to the examination. If scheduling does not allow for an in-person workshop, the AETC may offer a virtual workshop prior to the exam. These informal sessions usually include review of equipment, basic physiology and anatomy, specific nerve conduction study techniques, patient considerations and troubleshooting. This is not specifically a pre-examination workshop nor is it mandated, organized or sponsored by the BRETC in any way.
The volunteer technologists from the AETC involved in the workshop have no knowledge of the content of the exam. Any inquiries with respect to the workshop should be forwarded to vice-president@aetc.ca.

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Written Examination

A three-hour written examination will evaluate a candidate’s knowledge of:

  • nerve and muscle anatomy

  • NCS techniques

  • waveform recognition

  • clinical physiology of the nerve and muscle

  • instrumentation (for NCS and EMG)

  • electrodes (for NCS and EMG)

  • technical aspects of NCS

  • technical, physical, anatomical and physiological factors which may affect results

  • candidates will be required to perform some simple mathematical calculations, to recognize obvious and classic pathological features observed in NCS, and to distinguish pathophysiological abnormalities from artifact.

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Practical Examination

The practical examination format is a 3-station OSCE, lasting approximately 90 minutes and is intended to be an assessment of the candidate’s ability to set up and carry out conventional NCS on a normal volunteer patient. Patient handling, selection of instrument settings, application of electrodes, stimulation, management of artifact, quality of traces, reading and calculation of results, and practice of electrical safety will all be evaluated. There will not be any questions on the practical examination related to needle EMG.
 

Candidates will be assisted in operating unfamiliar EMG equipment, but must be able to independently specify settings for the NCS being performed. The EMG equipment available for the exam can vary depending upon the host laboratory. The BRETC Registrar will endeavour to advise the candidates of the EMG system being used in advance of the exam. Candidates are welcome to bring their own electrodes and accessories for use during the practical portion. Note that some systems do not allow for swapping out stimulators for another type. The candidates will not be advised about the polarity of the stimulating and recording electrodes and must not assume that the equipment they are using for the exam is equipped with signal isolation.


Candidates may perform NCS employing the techniques used in their home labs. Candidates must be aware of alternate methods of testing the same nerves, the pros and cons of each technique, and must be familiar with normative data for the techniques utilized.
 

Candidates will be penalized for what is observed as indiscriminate use of current and/or stimulus lead.

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Results

Results of the examination will be emailed within one week of the examination date. The decision of the Board is
final. If deemed necessary by the Board, feedback/performance evaluations will be emailed to the candidates
that have not passed the examination. Registration certificates will be mailed to all successful candidates within 8
weeks of the examination.

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​Application

Interested candidates are asked to contact the BRETC Registrar by e-mail to request an application package.​​​​

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Reading List

You can also download this list as a pdf.

This list is intended to serve as a guide to texts and articles that the A.E.T.C. deems as significant and useful references in the study of Electromyography and specifically nerve conduction studies. Although there are many online sources of information, these books provide quality information many exam candidates will find useful. Examination material will not necessarily be limited to information from these sources.

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  • Brown, Bolton & Aminoff. Neuromuscular Function and Disease. Basic, Clinical and Electrodiagnostic Aspects. Volume 1 and 2. Saunders. 2002.

  • Chu, J. Electrodiagnosis - An Anatomical and Clinical Approach.

  • Dawson, M., Hallet, M. and Millender, L. H. Entrapment Neuropathies. Little Brown and Company, 1993.

  • Dong, M. M. and Levison, J.A. Nerve Conduction I - Handbook. F. A. Davis Co., 1983.

  • Dumitru, D. and Walsh, N.: Practical Instrumentation and Common Sources of Error. American Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 1988.

  • Dyck, PJ, Thomas PK. Peripheral Neuropathy, 4th Edition. Boston: Butterworth-Heinemann. 2004.

  • Ferrante, Mark. EMG: What We Measure and What it Means. AANEM. 2012.

  • Fuller, G.: Neurological Exam Made Easy. Churchill Livingstone 1993.

  • Gitter, A.: Practical Instrumentation and Troubleshooting in the Clinical Setting. AAEM Course 1995.

  • Johnson, E. Practical Electromyography, 2nd ed. Williams and Wilkins, 1988.

  • Kimura, J. Electrodiagnosis in Diseases of Nerve and Muscle: Principles and Practice, 4th ed. F. A. Davis, 2013.

  • Medical Research Council. Aids to the examination of the peripheral nervous system. Crown, 1976.

  • Ma, D. M. and Liveson, J. A. Nerve Conduction Handbook, Davis, 1983.

  • Oh, Shin J. Clinical Electromyography. Nerve Conduction Studies. Baltimore. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. 2002.

  • Preston, David C, Shapiro, Barbara E., Electromyography and Neuromuscular Disorders. Clinical-Electrophysiologic Correlations 2nd Edition. Elsevier Butterworth Heinemann. 2005.

  • Stewart, J. Focal Peripheral Neuropathies. Elsevier, 2010.

Various authors: Minimonographs, Case Reports and Workshop handouts published by the American Association of Electrodiagnostic Medicine. (Also published in Muscle and Nerve.)

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