COMPUTERIZED TOMOGRAPHIC DETERMINATION OF HUMAN THIGH COMPONENTS - EFFECTS OF IMMOBILIZATION IN PLASTER AND SUBSEQUENT PHYSICAL-TRAINING

Abstract

Thigh components were estimated by computerized tomography (CT) as well as by anthropometry in 2 healthy male soccer players (23-29 yr), who for 5 wk had 1 knee immobilized in plaster of Paris. The investigations were performed on both thighs just after removal of the cast and after 5 wk physical training of the inactivated quadriceps muscle. The different components were easily identified on a transverse scan through the middle of the thigh. The quadriceps muscle was 26% smaller after removal of the cast in the inactivated leg as compared with the contralateral leg; no differences were observed in the remaining thigh components. After rehabilitation, a specific increase (22%) in the hypotrophic quadriceps muscle was observed, whereas no changes were observed in the remaining thigh components. The quadriceps muscle averaged 52% of the lean component in the uninjured thigh and the subcutaneous part of the total cross-sectional area averaged 15%. The changes in the anthropometrically determined thigh components paralleled those observed by the CT scanning procedure. The loss in the lean thigh volume during immobilization in plaster cast is exclusively due to waste of the quadriceps muscle. CT scanning comprises a new valid tool to study changes in thigh components.