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Gastrocnemius fascicles are shorter and more pennate throughout the first month following acute Achilles tendon rupture.

ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study was to characterize the short-term effects of Achilles tendon ruptures on medial gastrocnemius. We hypothesized that the fascicles of the medial gastrocnemius muscle of the injured Achilles tendon would be shorter and more pennate immediately following the injury and would persist throughout 4 weeks post-injury. B-mode longitudinal ultrasound images of the medial gastrocnemius were acquired in 10 adults who suffered acute Achilles tendon ruptures and were treated non-operatively. Ultrasound images were acquired during the initial clinical visit following injury as well as 2 and 4 weeks following this initial clinical visit. Resting muscle structure was characterized by measuring fascicle length, pennation angle, muscle thickness, and muscle echo intensity in both the injured and contralateral (control) limbs. Fascicle length was 15% shorter (P < 0.001) and pennation angle was 21% greater (P < 0.001) in the injured muscle compared to the uninjured (control) muscle at the presentation of injury (week 0). These differences in fascicle length persisted through 4 weeks after injury (P < 0.002) and pennation angle returned to pre-injury levels. Muscle thickness changes were not detected at any of the post-injury visits (difference < 4%, P > 0.026). Echo intensity of the injured limb was 8% lower at the presentation of the injury but was not different compared to the contralateral muscle at 2 and 4 weeks post-injury. Our results suggest that Achilles tendon ruptures elicit rapid changes in the configuration of the medial gastrocnemius, which may explain long-term functional deficits.

SUBMITTER: Hullfish TJ

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6485203 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Gastrocnemius fascicles are shorter and more pennate throughout the first month following acute Achilles tendon rupture.

Hullfish Todd J TJ O'Connor Kathryn M KM Baxter Josh R JR

PeerJ 20190423

The purpose of this study was to characterize the short-term effects of Achilles tendon ruptures on medial gastrocnemius. We hypothesized that the fascicles of the medial gastrocnemius muscle of the injured Achilles tendon would be shorter and more pennate immediately following the injury and would persist throughout 4 weeks post-injury. B-mode longitudinal ultrasound images of the medial gastrocnemius were acquired in 10 adults who suffered acute Achilles tendon ruptures and were treated non-op ...[more]

PMID: 31065459

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Project description:ObjectiveProfessional Basketball players are at high risk of Achilles tendon rupture. Despite this, there remains limited research into the factors affecting rehabilitation and the long term outcomes of these players. Our aim is to quantify the effect of a player's Achilles tendon rupture on their post-injury performance, and also to explore for correlations between their recovery timeline and pre-injury characteristics. Creation of an injury timeline of past incidents will allow injured players to better track their progress and also inform them about the probable impact on their careers.HypothesisPlayers with Achilles tendon rupture injury will exhibit decreased performance compared to their pre-injury self and their non-injured peers after recovery.MethodsProfessional basketball players who sustained a unilateral Achilles tendon rupture from 1992 to 2016 were collected. 12 players met our inclusion criteria and their Player Efficiency Ratings (PER) were obtained as primary outcome measures; matched controls were chosen based on the PER, Age and playing position. The players' index season PER was compared against the PER during the 10 games immediately following the players' return and the PER of their post-injury peak performing season. The same data analysis was performed against their control group. To investigate the factors affecting the recovery and long-term consequences of their injury, we correlated the variables of Age, BMI, Time of Injury and pre-injury PER with the player's time to return to play and their post-injury PER.Results2 out of 12 players failed to return to playing in the elite professional league following an Achilles Tendon Rupture, others returned after a mean recovery time of 10 months. When compared to players' index PER, the mean PER reduction during the 10 games immediately following the players' return was 7.15 (P < .000). Players on average took 1.8 seasons to reach their post-injury peak performance, with only 1 player returning to his pre-injury performance. Others suffered a mean PER reduction of 3.5 (P = .004) when compared to their index PER and 5.4 (P = .045) against their matched controls.ConclusionAchilles tendon rupture can be a career-ending injury for professional basketball players. They are expected to miss 10 months for rehabilitation and reach their post-injury peak performance level at the 2nd season back. The post-injury peak performance is significantly worse than the pre-injury level, but is similar to matched non-injured players.

Dataset Information

Gastrocnemius fascicles are shorter and more pennate throughout the first month following acute Achilles tendon rupture.

Publications

Gastrocnemius fascicles are shorter and more pennate throughout the first month following acute Achilles tendon rupture.

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