ESSR 2016 / P-0119
Muscle injury of the chest wall and upper extremity
Authors:
E. Sellon, P. Robinson; Leeds/UK
DOI:
10.1594/essr2016/P-0119
Conclusion
- Muscle injuries to the chest wall and upper extremity are not as common as in the lower extremity but are well described and usually arise from direct blunt impact or from excessive eccentric force.
- Minor strains and tears usually go unrecognised or unreported.
- High-grade muscle injuries however must be diagnosed early and accurately if surgery is to be considered as loss of function can have a greater impact on athletic ability than sometimes seen with lower limb injury.
- A detailed imaging assessment allows detection of possible complications and may also help to predict recovery time,
although currently there is no specific prognostic data available for the upper extremity.
- Documenting and classifying muscular injuries through imaging is important in elite sport,
as the greatest risk factor for musculotendinous injury is previous injury.
- MR imaging however has not yet been validated in predicting re-injury risk40,43.
- There are advantages and disadvantages to using US and MR imaging techniques in different settings and they are therefore commonly used together.
US is increasingly being used in elite sport however and may have a greater role in upper limb than lower limb imaging in where the muscle bulk is less.