Relationships between the Cross‐sectional area of the Quadriceps Musculature and the Cross‐sectional area of the Femoral Diaphysis in Post‐menopausal Females: Balanced Muscle with Unbalanced Bone

Abstract

The structural integrity of the femur is of particular importance for post‐menopausal women and therefore warrants study. A history of force transmitted through the femur from, for example, weight bearing activity is associated with increased femoral bone mass. However, little study has assessed the relationships between the musculature of the thigh and the structure of the bone. Therefore, this study assessed the bilateral cross‐sectional areas of quadriceps muscles, the mid‐diaphyseal marrow cavity, and the mid‐diaphyseal cortical bone via axial MRI in post‐menopausal women (Mean age = 63 years). Paired t‐test revealed no significant difference in vastus medialis, vastus intermedius, vastus lateralis, and rectus femoris cross‐sectional areas between thighs (p=0.06; p=0.62; p=0.12; p=0.06, respectively). Also, a paired t‐test did not reveal significance between the cross sectional area of the medullary cavity between sides (p=0.91). However, the outer diameter of the diaphysis was significantly different between sides (p=0.02). Accordingly, there was significant different in the cross‐sectional area of the cortical bone between sides (p=0.02). The right‐sided cortical bone cross‐sectional area was 393.2±87.9mm2 (Mean±SD) whereas the left‐sided cortical bone cross‐sectional area was 374.4±83.4mm2. The results of this study suggest that factors outside of musculature play an important role in cortical bone mass. Cortical bone, but not the marrow cavity, differs between femurs. Though speculative, the difference in bone mass is likely due to uneven loads between legs, suggesting a general favoring of load to the right side.This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.