Imaging of muscle injuries

Abstract

Although skeletal muscle is the single largest tissue in the body, there is little written about it in the radiologic literature. Indirect muscle injuries, also called strains or tears, are common in athletics, and knowing the morphology and physiology of the muscle-tendon unit is the key to the understanding of these injuries. Eccentric muscle activation produces more tension within the muscle than when it is activated concentrically, making it more susceptible to tearing. Injuries involving the muscle belly tend to occur near the myotendinous junction. In adolescents, the weakest link in the muscle-tendon-bone complex is the apophysis. Traditionally, plain radiography has been the main diagnostic modality for evaluation of these injuries; however, with the advent of MRI it has become much easier to diagnose injuries primarily affecting the soft tissues. This article reviews the anatomy and physiology of the muscle-tendon unit as they relate to indirect muscle injuries. Examples of common muscle injuries are illustrated.

Epidemiology of Quadriceps Strains in National Collegiate Athletic Association Athletes, 2009–2010 Through 2014–2015

“…10,11 Compared with all 3 hamstrings muscles, only 1 of the 4 quadriceps muscles crosses both the hip and knee joints in its course. The hamstrings group may also have a higher injury rate due to strength imbalances in comparison with the quadriceps, which are often found in athletes.…”

“…4 Also, competition often features stronger muscle contractions coupled with greater fatigue relative to practice settings, thereby placing athletes at greater risk for muscle strains. 10,21 However, nearly 4 times as many quadriceps strains were reported in practices than in competitions, which is most likely the result of far larger numbers of practices than competitions across a season. In both practice and competition settings, athletes should take the time to perform an active warm-up before activity and conclude with postactivity stretching to decrease the risk of injury associated with stiffness and length asymmetries.…”

“…It is also common for athletes to experience the greatest total training volume during the preseason, which may cause fatigue that places athletes at greater risk for strains. 10,21 Injury Mechanism…”

Multidetector computed tomography in acute joint fractures

“…The softtissue contrast resolution of CT allows the differentiation of ligaments and tendons from the surrounding fat, but MRI has proved to be superior to CT of these structures and for evaluation of traumatic muscle lesions (Rosenberg et al 1988, El-Khoury et al 1996, Farooki and Seeger 1999.…”

Study of cervical muscle response and injury of driver during a frontal vehicle collision

“…Muscle injuries have two main causes, sharp active contraction and excessive passive stretch [4]. Cervical motion during collision has the potential to cause both of these phenomena, meaning that collisions can easily result in injury to the cervical muscles.…”