Non-invasive assessment of lower extremity muscle composition after incomplete spinal cord injury

• Published in: Spinal cord 2008-08, Vol.46 (8), p.565-570
• Main Authors: Shah, P K, Gregory, C M, Stevens, J E, Pathare, N C, Jayaraman, A, Behrman, A L, Walter, G A, Vandenborne, K
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adipose Tissue - metabolism; Adult; Anatomy; Biological and medical sciences; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Body Composition - physiology; Case-Control Studies; Cerebrospinal fluid. Meninges. Spinal cord; Cross-Sectional Studies; Electromyography; Female; Human Physiology; Humans; Injuries of the nervous system and the skull. Diseases due to physical agents; Lipid Metabolism - physiology; Lower Extremity - pathology; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy - methods; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Muscle Contraction; Muscle, Skeletal - metabolism; Muscle, Skeletal - pathology; Muscle, Skeletal - physiopathology; Nervous system (semeiology, syndromes); Neurochemistry; Neurology; Neuropsychology; Neurosciences; original-article; Protons; Spinal Cord Injuries - pathology; Spinal Cord Injuries - physiopathology; Statistics, Nonparametric; Traumas. Diseases due to physical agents
• ISSN: 1362-4393; 1476-5624
• DOI: 10.1038/sc.2008.10

Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Objective: (1) To quantify intramyocellular lipid (IMCL) content of the soleus muscle. (2) To assess the T 2 relaxation rates in the lower extremity skeletal muscles in persons with incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI). Setting: Academic Institution, Florida. Methods: Eight subjects (42±10 years old; 70±12 kg; 176±10 cm) with chronic (17±9 months post injury) motor SCI (C4-T12; ASIA C or D) and eight matched healthy controls were tested. Localized unsuppressed proton spectroscopy (H-MRS) was performed to estimate total lipid content and individual lipid components; IMCL and extramyocellular lipid (EMCL) from the soleus muscle. T 2 -weighted imaging of lower extremity muscles yielded muscle T 2 rates. Results: The IMCL content of the soleus muscle was 3.3 times higher in the patient group as compared to controls ( P =0.002; 0.0401 (0.0234–0.0849) versus 0.0123 (0.0090–0.0175)). Similarly, EMCL measures were 4.5 times higher as compared to the controls ( P =0.002). Significant differences were observed in the T 2 relaxation times of the soleus and gastrocnemius muscles ( P