Muscle in chronic uremia--a histochemical and morphometric study of human quadriceps muscle biopsies.

This report describes qualitative and quantitative studies performed on ten muscle biopsies from chronic uremic patients on renal dialysis at light and electron microscopic (EM) levels. The muscle biopsies showed myopathic changes (variation in fiber size, central nuclei, and fiber splitting). Histochemical studies showed type II fiber atrophy and lipid deposits. The ultrastructural study showed disruption of myofibrillary architecture and subsarcolemmal deposits of glycogen, mitochondria, and lipids. Quantitative estimations of the subcellular organelles revealed a statistically significant increase in lipid and glycogen contents of the muscle. The myopathic changes, type II atrophy, and lipid and glycogen deposits in chronic uremic patients raise the question of the effects of uremia and/or chronic dialysis on muscle metabolism.