Hoffman Larisa R, Koppenhaver Shane L, MacDonald Cameron W, Herrera Johnny M, Streuli Joshua, Visco Zachary L, Wildermuth Nicole, Albin Stephanie R
Regis University.
Baylor University.
Int J Sports Phys Ther. 2021 Feb 1;16(1):41-48. doi: 10.26603/001c.18803.
Quantifying muscle stiffness may aid in the diagnosis and management of individuals with muscle pathology. Therefore, the primary purpose of this study was to establish normative parameters and variance estimates of muscle stiffness in the gastrocnemius muscle in a resting and contracted state. A secondary aim was to identify demographic, anthropometric, medical history factors, and biomechanical factors related to muscle stiffness.
Stiffness of the gastrocnemius muscle was measured in both a resting and contracted state in 102 asymptomatic individuals in this cross-sectional study. Differences based on muscle state (resting vs contracted) and sex (female vs male) were assessed using a 2 X 2 analysis of variance (ANOVA). Associations between muscle stiffness and sex, age, BMI, race, exercise frequency, exercise duration, force production, and step length were assessed using correlation analysis.
Gastrocnemius muscle stiffness significantly increased from a resting to a contracted state [mean difference: 217.5 (95% CI: 191.3, 243.8), p < 0.001]. In addition, muscles stiffness was 35% greater for males than females in a resting state and 76% greater in a contracted state. Greater muscle stiffness in a relaxed and contracted state was associated with larger plantarflexion force production ( = .26, p < 0.01 and = .23, p < 0.01 respectively).
Identifying normative parameters and variance estimates of muscle stiffness in asymptomatic individuals may help guide diagnosing and managing individuals with aberrant muscle function.
2b Individual Cohort Study.
Muscle stiffness has been shown to be related to individuals with pathology such as Achilles tendinopathy; however, research is sparse regarding normative values of muscle stiffness. Measuring muscle stiffness may also be a way to potentially predict individuals prone to injury or to monitor the effectiveness of management strategies. This study establishes defined estimates of muscle stiffness of the gastrocnemius in both a relaxed and contracted state in healthy individuals. Myotonometry measures of muscle stiffness demonstrated an increase in stiffness during contraction that varies by sex. Greater gastrocnemius muscle stiffness was associated with increased plantarflexion force production.
量化肌肉僵硬度可能有助于肌肉病变个体的诊断和管理。因此，本研究的主要目的是建立腓肠肌在静息和收缩状态下肌肉僵硬度的标准参数和方差估计值。次要目的是确定与肌肉僵硬度相关的人口统计学、人体测量学、病史因素和生物力学因素。
在这项横断面研究中，对102名无症状个体的腓肠肌在静息和收缩状态下的僵硬度进行了测量。使用2×2方差分析（ANOVA）评估基于肌肉状态（静息与收缩）和性别（女性与男性）的差异。使用相关分析评估肌肉僵硬度与性别、年龄、体重指数、种族、运动频率、运动持续时间、力量产生和步长之间 的关联。
腓肠肌僵硬度从静息状态到收缩状态显著增加[平均差异：217.5（95%CI：191.3，243.8），p<0.001]。此外，在静息状态下，男性的肌肉僵硬度比女性高35%，在收缩状态下高76%。在放松和收缩状态下更大的肌肉僵硬度与更大的跖屈力产生相关（分别为r = 0.26，p<0.01和r = 0.23，p<0.01）。
确定无症状个体肌肉僵硬度的标准参数和方差估计值可能有助于指导对肌肉功能异常个体的诊断和管理。
2b级个体队列研究。
肌肉僵硬度已被证明与跟腱病等病变个体有关；然而，关于肌肉僵硬度标准值的研究很少。测量肌肉僵硬度也可能是一种潜在的方法，用于预测易受伤个体或监测管理策略的有效性。本研究建立了健康个体在放松和收缩状态下腓肠肌肌肉僵硬度的明确估计值。肌肉僵硬度的肌张力测量显示收缩过程中僵硬度增加，且因性别而异。更大的腓肠肌僵硬度与增加的跖屈力产生相关。
