Muscle Thickness of Anterior Mid-Thigh in Hospitalized Patients: Comparison of Supine and Standing Postures.

OBJECTIVES

To compare the magnitude changes in muscle thickness (MTH) of the anterior mid-thigh between the supine and standing postures.

DESIGN

Experimental.

SETTING

University hospital laboratory.

PARTICIPANTS

Inpatients (N=283) between the ages of 29 and 93 years (193 men, 90 women) with cardiovascular disease who volunteered for this study.

INTERVENTIONS

Not applicable.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

MTH of the anterior mid-thigh was measured with a 10 MHz ultrasound probe while the participants stood or lay supine in a relaxed position with their arms extended and by their sides.

RESULTS

Age and percentage of body fat were greater (<.01) in women than in men (74.3±12.3 vs 67.7±12.1y and 32.6±10.3% vs 27.4±7.4%, respectively), but standing height, body weight, and body mass index were greater (<.01) in men than in women (164.9±6.3 vs 149.1±7.5 cm, 65.4±12.7 vs 49.5±11.1 kg, and 23.8±3.9 vs 22.1±4.4 kg/m, respectively). Correlations were found between the standing posture and supine position in the anterior-mid thigh MTH for both men (=0.85; <.01) and women (=0.82; <.01). In the anterior-mid thigh for men and women, MTH was greater in the standing posture (3.7±1.0 vs 2.5±0.7 cm) than in supine position (3.1±0.8 vs 2.1±0.7 cm) (both <.01).

CONCLUSIONS

In this study, MTH of the anterior mid-thigh during prolonged hospitalization was approximately 16% higher in men than in women regardless of posture, and was approximately 32% higher in standing posture than in the supine position regardless of sex.