Relating to the electrical state or altered excitability of a nerve or muscle tissue due to applied electrical current.
From electro- + tonic (from Greek tonikos, 'relating to tone or tension'). Term developed in neurology and physiology in the 1800s.
When neurologists studied how electricity affected nerves, they discovered that current flow changes a nerve's electrical 'tone' or readiness to fire—this 'electrotonic' effect is crucial to understanding how modern nerve stimulation therapies work.
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