Aims and objectives
Decrease in muscle mass (sarcopenia),
and an increase in subcutaneous and intermuscular (“myosteatosis”) adipose tissue,
are both linked to age-,
cancer,
and chronic disease-related changes.
Hand-held 2D SoS-US is a novel technique,
which uses a conventional ultrasound system to measure SoS in tissue.
A passive reflector is positioned in opposite of a hand-held ultrasound probe with the tissue in between.
The reflector is used a reference to measure the time of propagation of the ultrasound echoes transmitted through the tissue and reflected back to the...
Methods and materials
The calf muscles of 10 healthy,
young,
and female volunteers (mean age 29 years) as well as 10 elderly females (mean age 82 years) were prospectively examined with a standard ultrasound machine.(Table 1)A flat Plexiglas-reflector was used as timing reference for SoS (m/s) and ΔSoS (variation of SoS,
m/s) on the opposite side of the probe with the calf in between.(Fig.
1 and 2)SoS,
ΔSoS,
handgrip strength (kPA),
5-point comfort score (one = comfortable to five = never again) and Tegner activity scores were assessed....
Results
Both calves were assessed in less than two minutes per candidate.
All measurements were successful.
The elderly females showed a significant lower SoS (1516 m/s,
standard deviation 17) compared to young adults (1545 m/s,
standard deviation 10; p<0.01).The ΔSoS of the elderly females was significantly higher (12.2 m/s,
standard deviation 3.6) than for young females (6.4 m/s,
standard deviation 1.5; p<0.01).
(Fig.
2-4) There was a significant correlation between right and left calves (r=0.68; p<0.01).
There was no significant correlation of SoS and ΔSoS with...
Conclusion
There were significant differences of SoS and ΔSoS between young and elderly females.
Measurements were fast and well tolerated.
The novel technique shows potential for quantification of sarcopenia using a standard ultrasound machine.
References
Ticinesi A,
Meschi T,
Narici MV,
et al.
Muscle Ultrasound and Sarcopenia in Older Individuals: A Clinical Perspective.
J Am Med Dir Assoc.
2017;18(4):290-300.