Non-volitional assessment of skeletal muscle strength in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Background: Although quadriceps weakness is well recognised in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the aetiology remains unknown. In disabled patients the quadriceps is a particularly underused muscle and may not reflect skeletal muscle function as a whole. Loss of muscle function is likel...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Thorax 2003-08, Vol.58 (8), p.665-669
Main Authors: Man, W D-C, Soliman, M G G, Nikoletou, D, Harris, M L, Rafferty, G F, Mustfa, N, Polkey, M I, Moxham, J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Analysis
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Diaphragm - physiology
Electromyography
Evaluation
Forced Expiratory Volume - physiology
Humans
Hypotheses
Lung diseases, Obstructive
Muscle function
Muscle strength
Muscles
Musculoskeletal system
Physiological aspects
Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive - physiopathology
Respiratory Muscles - physiology
Silver
skeletal muscle strength
Statistics
Steroids
Strain gauges
transcutaneous nerve stimulation
Vital Capacity - physiology
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Summary:Background: Although quadriceps weakness is well recognised in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the aetiology remains unknown. In disabled patients the quadriceps is a particularly underused muscle and may not reflect skeletal muscle function as a whole. Loss of muscle function is likely to be equally distributed if the underlying pathology is a systemic abnormality. Conversely, if deconditioning and disuse are the principal aetiological factors, weakness would be most marked in the lower limb muscles. Methods: The non-volitional technique of supramaximal magnetic stimulation was used to assess twitch tensions of the adductor pollicis, quadriceps, and diaphragm muscles (TwAP, TwQ, and TwPdi) in 22 stable non-weight losing COPD patients and 18 elderly controls. Results: Mean (SD) TwQ tension was reduced in the COPD patients (7.1 (2.2) kg v 10.0 (2.7) kg; 95% confidence intervals (CI) −4.4 to −1.4; p
ISSN:0040-6376
1468-3296
DOI:10.1136/thorax.58.8.665