TY - JOUR
T1 - Usefulness of Ultrasound Shear Wave Elastography for Detection of Quadriceps Contracture in Immobilized Rats
AU - Suwankanit, Kanokwan
AU - Shimizu, Miki
AU - Suzuki, Kazuhiko
AU - Kaneda, Masahiro
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 by the authors.
PY - 2024/1
Y1 - 2024/1
N2 - Quadriceps contracture is an abnormal pathological shortening of the muscle–tendon unit. To improve the prognosis of quadriceps contracture, improvement of its diagnostic method is needed. In this study, we evaluated the diagnostic utility of ultrasound shear wave elastography in a rat model of quadriceps contracture induced by immobilization. Fifty Wistar rats were randomly divided into control and immobilization groups. During up to 4 weeks of joint immobilization, the quadriceps elastic modulus, muscle hardness, creatinine phosphokinase levels, joint range of motion, histopathologic parameters, and levels of fibrosis-associated mRNA expression were measured every week in the immobilization and control groups and compared. In the immobilization group, the elastic modulus gradually but significantly increased (p < 0.05) throughout the immobilization period. However, muscle hardness and serum creatinine phosphokinase levels only increased at 1 and 2 weeks after the start of immobilization, respectively. Muscle atrophy and shortening progressed throughout the immobilization group. Collagen type I and III, α-SMA protein, and mRNA expression of IL-1β and TGF-β1 significantly increased (p < 0.05) throughout in the immobilization group. Ultrasound shear wave elastography is the most useful method for clinical assessment of muscle contracture.
AB - Quadriceps contracture is an abnormal pathological shortening of the muscle–tendon unit. To improve the prognosis of quadriceps contracture, improvement of its diagnostic method is needed. In this study, we evaluated the diagnostic utility of ultrasound shear wave elastography in a rat model of quadriceps contracture induced by immobilization. Fifty Wistar rats were randomly divided into control and immobilization groups. During up to 4 weeks of joint immobilization, the quadriceps elastic modulus, muscle hardness, creatinine phosphokinase levels, joint range of motion, histopathologic parameters, and levels of fibrosis-associated mRNA expression were measured every week in the immobilization and control groups and compared. In the immobilization group, the elastic modulus gradually but significantly increased (p < 0.05) throughout the immobilization period. However, muscle hardness and serum creatinine phosphokinase levels only increased at 1 and 2 weeks after the start of immobilization, respectively. Muscle atrophy and shortening progressed throughout the immobilization group. Collagen type I and III, α-SMA protein, and mRNA expression of IL-1β and TGF-β1 significantly increased (p < 0.05) throughout in the immobilization group. Ultrasound shear wave elastography is the most useful method for clinical assessment of muscle contracture.
KW - muscle atrophy
KW - muscle elasticity
KW - muscle stiffness
KW - range of joint motion
KW - sarcomere length
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85181875336&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/ani14010076
DO - 10.3390/ani14010076
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85181875336
SN - 2076-2615
VL - 14
JO - Animals
JF - Animals
IS - 1
M1 - 76
ER -