Skeletal Muscle Composition and Glucose Levels in Children Who Are Overweight and Obese

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 157-164
Author(s):  
Trent J. Herda ◽  
Philip M. Gallagher ◽  
Jonathan D. Miller ◽  
Matthew P. Bubak ◽  
Mandy E. Parra

Background: Skeletal muscle is overlooked in the realm of insulin resistance in children who are overweight and obese despite the fact that it accounts for the most glucose disposal. Objectives: Therefore, this study examined fasted glucose levels and muscle cross-sectional area and echo intensity (EI) via ultrasound images of the first dorsal interosseous, vastus lateralis, and rectus femoris in children who are normal weight and overweight and obese aged 8–10 years. Methods: In total, 13 males (age = 9.0 [0.7] y) and 7 females (age = 9.0 [0.8] y) volunteered for this study. Independent samples t tests and effect sizes (ESs) were used to examine potential differences in skeletal muscle composition and glucose concentrations. Results: There were no significant differences between groups for glucose concentration (P = .07, ES = 0.86); however, the children who were overweight and obese had significantly greater EI (P < .01, ES = 0.98–1.63) for the first dorsal interosseous, vastus lateralis, and rectus femoris and lower cross-sectional area when normalized to EI when collapsed across muscles (P < .04, ES = 0.92). Glucose concentrations correlated with EI and cross-sectional area/EI for the vastus lateralis (r = .514 to −.593) and rectus femoris (r = .551 to −.513), but not the first dorsal interosseous. Discussion: There is evidence that adiposity-related pathways leading to insulin resistance and skeletal muscle degradation are active in young children who are overweight and obese.

PeerJ ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
pp. e8224 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rob J. MacLennan ◽  
Michael Sahebi ◽  
Nathan Becker ◽  
Ethan Davis ◽  
Jeanette M. Garcia ◽  
...  

Background Disuse of a muscle group, which occurs during bedrest, spaceflight, and limb immobilization, results in atrophy. It is unclear, however, if the magnitude of decline in skeletal muscle quality is similar to that for muscle size. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of two weeks of knee joint immobilization on vastus lateralis and rectus femoris echo intensity and cross-sectional area. Methods Thirteen females (mean ± SD age = 21 ± 2 years) underwent two weeks of left knee joint immobilization via ambulating on crutches and use of a brace. B-mode ultrasonography was utilized to obtain transverse plane images of the immobilized and control vastus lateralis and rectus femoris at pretest and following immobilization. Effect size statistics and two-way repeated measures analyses of variance were used to interpret the data. Results No meaningful changes were demonstrated for the control limb and the rectus femoris of the immobilized limb. Analyses showed a large increase in vastus lateralis echo intensity (i.e., decreased muscle quality) for the immobilized limb (p = .006, Cohen’s d = .918). For vastus lateralis cross-sectional area, no time × limb interaction was observed (p = .103), but the effect size was moderate (d = .570). There was a significant association between the increase in vastus lateralis echo intensity and the decrease in cross-sectional area (r =  − .649, p = .016). Conclusion In female participants, two weeks of knee joint immobilization resulted in greater deterioration of muscle quality than muscle size. Echo intensity appears to be an attractive clinical tool for monitoring muscle quality during disuse.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Ritsche ◽  
Philipp Wirth ◽  
Neil Cronin ◽  
Fabio Sarto ◽  
Marco Narici ◽  
...  

Background: Muscle anatomical cross-sectional area (ACSA) is an important parameter that characterizes muscle function and helps to classify the severity of several muscular disorders. Ultrasound is a patient friendly, fast and cheap method of assessing muscle ACSA, but manual analysis of the images is laborious, subjective and requires thorough experience. To date, no open access and fully automated program to segment ACSA in ultrasound images is available. On this basis, we present DeepACSA, a deep learning approach to automatically segment ACSA in panoramic ultrasound images of the human rectus femoris (RF), vastus lateralis (VL), gastrocnemius medialis (GM) and lateralis (GL) muscles. Methods: We trained convolutional neural networks using 1772 ultrasound images from 153 participants (25 females, 128 males; mean age = 38.2 years, range: 13-78) captured by three experienced operators using three distinct devices. We trained three muscle-specific models to detect ACSA. Findings: Comparing DeepACSA analysis of the RF to manual analysis resulted in intra-class correlation (ICC) of 0.96 (95% CI 0.94,0.97), mean difference of 0.31 cm2 (0.04,0.58) and standard error of the differences (SEM) of 0.91 cm2 (0.47,1.36). For the VL, ICC was 0.94 (0.91,0.96), mean difference was 0.25 cm2 (-0.21,0.7) and SEM was 1.55 cm2 (1.13,1.96). The GM/GL muscles demonstrated an ICC of 0.97 (0.95,0.98), a mean difference of 0.01 cm2 (-0.25, 0.24) and a SEM of 0.69 cm2 (0.52,0.83). Interpretation: DeepACSA provides fast and objective segmentation of lower limb panoramic ultrasound images comparable to manual segmentation and is easy to implement both in research and clinical settings. Inaccurate model predictions occurred predominantly on low-quality images, highlighting the importance of high image quality for accurate prediction.


2020 ◽  
Vol 45 (4) ◽  
pp. 368-375 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joshua P. Nederveen ◽  
George Ibrahim ◽  
Stephen A. Fortino ◽  
Tim Snijders ◽  
Dinesh Kumbhare ◽  
...  

The percutaneous muscle biopsy procedure is an invaluable tool for characterizing skeletal muscle and capillarization. Little is known about methodological or biological variation stemming from the technique in heterogeneous muscle. Five muscle biopsies were taken from the vastus lateralis of a group of young men (n = 29, 22 ± 1 years) over a 96-h period. We investigated the repeatability of fibre distribution, indices of muscle capillarization and perfusion, and myofibre characteristics. No differences between the biopsies were reported in myofibre type distribution, cross-sectional area (CSA), and perimeter. Capillary-to-fibre perimeter exchange index and individual capillary-fibre contacts were unchanged with respect to the location of the muscle biopsy and index of capillarization. The variability in the sampling distribution of fibre type specific muscle CSA increased when fewer than 150 muscle fibres were quantified. Variability in fibre type distribution increased when fewer than 150 muscle fibres were quantified. Myofibre characteristics and indices of capillarization are largely consistent throughout the vastus lateralis when assessed via the skeletal muscle biopsy technique. Novelty Markers of muscle capillarization and perfusion were unchanged across multiple sites of the human vastus lateralis. Myofibre characteristics such as muscle cross-sectional area, perimeter, and fibre type distribution were also unchanged. Variation of muscle CSA was higher when fewer than 150 muscle fibres were quantified.


1997 ◽  
Vol 83 (6) ◽  
pp. 1998-2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. A. Kent-Braun ◽  
A. V. Ng ◽  
M. Castro ◽  
M. W. Weiner ◽  
D. Gelinas ◽  
...  

Kent-Braun, J. A., A. V. Ng, M. Castro, M. W. Weiner, D. Gelinas, G. A. Dudley, and R. G. Miller. Strength, skeletal muscle composition and enzyme activity in multiple sclerosis. J. Appl. Physiol. 83(6): 1998–2004, 1997.—This study examined functional, biochemical, and morphological characteristics of skeletal muscle in nine multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and eight healthy controls in an effort to ascertain whether intramuscular adaptations could account for excessive fatigue in this disease. Analyses of biopsies of the tibialis anterior muscle showed that there were fewer type I fibers (66 ± 6 vs. 76 ± 6%), and that fibers of all types were smaller (average ↓26%) and had lower succinic dehydrogenase (SDH; average ↓40%) and SDH/α-glycerol-phosphate dehydrogenase (GPDH) but not GPDH activities in MS vs. control subjects, suggesting that muscle in this disease is smaller and relies more on anaerobic than aerobic-oxidative energy supply than does muscle of healthy individuals. Maximal voluntary isometric force for dorsiflexion was associated with both average fiber cross-sectional area ( r = 0.71, P = 0.005) and muscle fat-free cross-sectional area by magnetic resonance imaging ( r = 0.80, P < 0.001). Physical activity, assessed by accelerometer, was associated with average fiber SDH/GPDH ( r = 0.78, P = 0.008). There was a tendency for symptomatic fatigue to be inversely associated with average fiber SDH activity ( r = −0.57, P = 0.068). The results of this study suggest that the inherent characteristics of skeletal muscle fibers per se and of skeletal muscle as a whole are altered in the direction of disuse in MS. They also suggest that changes in skeletal muscle in MS may significantly affect function.


2008 ◽  
Vol 105 (3) ◽  
pp. 800-804 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aikaterini E. Tsakoniti ◽  
Christoforos A. Stoupis ◽  
Spyros I. Athanasopoulos

Knee pain and dysfunction have been often associated with an ineffective pull of the patella by the vastus medialis (VM) relative to the vastus lateralis (VL), particularly in individuals with knee joint malalignment. Such changes in muscular behavior may be attributed to muscle inhibition and/or atrophy that precedes the onset of symptoms. The aim of this study was to investigate possible effects of knee joint malalignment, indicated by a high quadriceps (Q) angle (HQ angle >15°), on the anatomic cross-sectional area (aCSA) of the entire quadriceps and its individual parts, in a group of 17 young asymptomatic men compared with a group of 19 asymptomatic individuals with low Q angle (LQ angle <15°). The aCSA of the entire quadriceps (TQ), VM, VL, vastus intermedius (VI), rectus femoris (RF), and patellar tendon (PT) were measured during static and dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with the quadriceps relaxed and under contraction, respectively. A statistically significant lower aCSA was obtained in the HQ angle group, compared with the LQ angle group, for the TQ, VL, and VI in both static (TQ = 9.9%, VL = 12.9%, and VI = 9.1%; P < 0.05) and dynamic imaging (TQ = 10.7%, P < 0.001; VL = 13.4%, P < 0.01; and VI = 9.8%, P < 0.05) and the aCSA of the VM in dynamic MRI (11.9%; P < 0.01). The muscle atrophy obtained in the HQ angle group may be the result of a protective mechanism that inhibits and progressively adapts muscle behavior to reduce abnormal loading and wear of joint structures.


Author(s):  
Ufuk Şekir 9) ◽  
Uğur Can Yalaki ◽  
Bedrettin Akova

Objective: To examine the relationship between knee extensor strength and quadriceps muscle architecture evaluated with ultrasonography during relaxed and contracted situations. Materials and Methods: A total of 40 healthy participants (age range 18-40), doing sports at a recreational level were included. Pennation angle, muscle thickness, and cross-sectional area of the vastus medialis, vastus lateralis, and rectus femoris muscles were measured firstly during rest while participants are sitting on an isokinetic dynamometer with their knees at 0° and 60° of flexion. Thereafter, ultrasound evaluations were performed during maximal isometric contraction at 60° knee flexion and maximal isokinetic contraction at 30°/sec and 60°/sec speeds. The architectural parameters were correlated with peak isometric (measured at 60° knee flexion) and isokinetic (measured at 30°/sec and 60°/sec angular velocities) torque values. Results: Pennation angle (p<0.001), muscle thickness (p<0.001) and muscle cross-sectional area (p<0.001) of the vastus medialis muscle during rest, and isometric and isokinetic maximal contractions were higher than the vastus lateralis and rectus femoris muscles. Pennation angle, muscle thickness and muscle cross-sectional area parameters measured during rest, and isometric and isokinetic maximal contractions in the vastus medialis (r=0.39-0.64, p<0.05-0.01) and vastus lateralis (r=0.36-0.68, p<0.05-0.01) showed weak to moderate correlations with isometric and isokinetic peak torque. In rectus femoris muscle, on the other hand, except the weak correlation in pennation angle (r=0.35-0.49, p<0.05-0.01), muscle thickness (r=0.74-0.80, p<0.001) and cross-sectional area (r=0.71-0.80, p<0.001) had a moderate to strong correlation with isometric and isokinetic strength. Stepwise regression analysis indicated that rectus femoris cross-sectional area measured during knee relaxed at 60° flexion (R2=0.532-0.610) and rectus femoris muscle thickness measured during isometric and isokinetic contraction modes (R2=0.538-0.600) were decisive to predict the isometric and isokinetic strength of the quadriceps muscle. Conclusion: Contrary to pennation angle, muscle thickness and cross-sectional area of the rectus femoris measured during relaxed and contracted conditions may be determinative in predicting isometric and isokinetic strength.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Ritsche ◽  
Philipp Wirth ◽  
Martino V. Franchi ◽  
Oliver Faude

AbstractOpen-access scripts to perform muscle anatomical cross-sectional area (ACSA) evaluation in ultrasound images are currently unavailable. This study presents a novel semi-automatic ImageJ script (named “ACSAuto”) for quantifying the ACSA of lower limb muscles. We compared manual ACSA measurements from 180 ultrasound scans of vastus lateralis (VL) and rectus femoris (RF) muscles to measurements assessed by the ACSAuto script. We investigated inter- and intra-investigator reliability of the script. Consecutive-pairwise intra-class correlations (ICC) and standard error of measurement (SEM) with 95% compatibility interval were calculated. Bland–Altman analyses were employed to test the agreement between measurements. Comparing manual and ACSAuto measurements, ICCs and SEMs ranged from 0.96 to 0.999 and 0.12 to 0.96 cm2 (1.2–5.9%) and mean bias was smaller than 0.5 cm2 (4.3%). Inter-investigator comparison revealed ICCs, SEMs and mean bias ranging from 0.85 to 0.999, 0.07 to 1.16 cm2 (0.9–7.6%) and − 0.16 to 0.66 cm2 (− 0.6 to 3.2%). Intra-investigator comparison revealed ICCs, SEMs and mean bias between 0.883–0.998, 0.07–0.93 cm2 (1.1–7.6%) and − 0.80 to 0.15 cm2 (− 3.4 to 1.8%). Image quality needs to be high for efficient and accurate ACSAuto analyses. Taken together, the ACSAuto script represents a reliable tool to measure RF and VL ACSA, is comparable to manual analysis and can reduce time needed to evaluate ultrasound images.


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 2721
Author(s):  
Nobuto Nakanishi ◽  
Shigeaki Inoue ◽  
Rie Tsutsumi ◽  
Yusuke Akimoto ◽  
Yuko Ono ◽  
...  

Ultrasound has become widely used as a means to measure the rectus femoris muscle in the acute and chronic phases of critical illness. Despite its noninvasiveness and accessibility, its accuracy highly depends on the skills of the technician. However, few ultrasound phantoms for the confirmation of its accuracy or to improve technical skills exist. In this study, the authors created a novel phantom model and used it for investigating the accuracy of measurements and for training. Study 1 investigated how various conditions affect ultrasound measurements such as thickness, cross-sectional area, and echogenicity. Study 2 investigated if the phantom can be used for the training of various health care providers in vitro and in vivo. Study 1 showed that thickness, cross-sectional area, and echogenicity were affected by probe compression strength, probe angle, phantom compression, and varying equipment. Study 2 in vitro showed that using the phantom for training improved the accuracy of the measurements taken within the phantom, and Study 2 in vivo showed the phantom training had a short-term effect on improving the measurement accuracy in a human volunteer. The new ultrasound phantom model revealed that various conditions affected ultrasound measurements, and phantom training improved the measurement accuracy.


2005 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. A. Gregory ◽  
M. N. Deane ◽  
M. Marsh

Objective: The precise mechanisms by which massage promotes repair in injured soft tissue are unknown. Various authorshave attributed the beneficial effects of massage to vasodilation and increased skin and muscle blood flow. The aim of this study was to determine whether deep transverse friction massage (DTF) causes capillary vasodilation in untraumatised skeletal muscle. Setting: Academic institution.Interventions: Twelve New Zealand white rabbits were anaesthetised and the left biceps femoris muscle received 10 minutes of DTF. Following treatment, wedge biopsies were taken from the musclewithin 10 minutes of treatment (R1 - 4), 24 hours (R5 - 8) and 6 days(R9 - 12) after treatment. To serve as controls, similar biopsies weretaken from the right biceps femoris of animals. The samples were fixed, dehydrated and embedded in epoxy resin.Transverse sections (1µm) of muscle were cut, stained with 1% aqueous alkaline toluidine blue and examined with a light microscope using a 40X objective. Images containing capillaries were captured using an image analyser with SIS software and the cross sectional diameters of at least 60 capillaries were measured from each specimen. Main Outcome Measures: Changes in capillary diameter. Results: The mean capillary diameters in control muscle averaged 4.76 µm. DTF caused a significant immediate increase of 17.3% in cross sectional area (p<0.001), which was not significantly increased by 10.0% after 24 hours (p>0.05). Six days after treatment the cross-sectional area of the treated muscle was 7.6% smaller than the controls. Conclusions: This confirms the contention that DTF stimulates muscle blood flow immediately after treatment and this may account for its beneficial effects in certain conditions. 


1999 ◽  
Vol 276 (2) ◽  
pp. R591-R596 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Green ◽  
C. Goreham ◽  
J. Ouyang ◽  
M. Ball-Burnett ◽  
D. Ranney

To examine the hypothesis that increases in fiber cross-sectional area mediated by high-resistance training (HRT) would result in a decrease in fiber capillarization and oxidative potential, regardless of fiber type, we studied six untrained males (maximum oxygen consumption, 45.6 ± 2.3 ml ⋅ kg−1 ⋅ min−1; mean ± SE) participating in a 12-wk program designed to produce a progressive hypertrophy of the quadriceps muscle. The training sessions, which were conducted 3 times/wk, consisted of three sets of three exercises, each performed for 6–8 repetitions maximum (RM). Measurements of fiber-type distribution obtained from tissue extracted from the vastus lateralis at 0, 4, 7, and 12 wk indicated reductions ( P < 0.05) in type IIB fibers (15.1 ± 2.1% vs. 7.2 ± 1.3%) by 4 wk in the absence of changes in the other fiber types (types I, IIA, and IIAB). Training culminated in a 17% increase ( P < 0.05) in cross-sectional area by 12 wk with initial increases observed at 4 wk. The increase was independent of fiber type-specific changes. The number of capillaries in contact with each fiber type increased by 12 wk, whereas capillary contacts-to-fiber area ratios remained unchanged. In a defined cross-sectional field, HRT also increased the capillaries per fiber at 12 wk. Training failed to alter cellular oxidative potential, as measured by succinic dehydrogenase (SDH) activity, regardless of fiber type and training duration. It is concluded that modest hypertrophy induced by HRT does not compromise cellular tissue capillarization and oxidative potential regardless of fiber type.


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