Shear-wave velocity of the patellar tendon and quadriceps muscle is increased immediately after maximal eccentric exercise

International audience; Full text linksfull text provider logoActionsFavoritesSharePage navigation Title & authors Abstract References MeSH terms Related information LinkOut - more resourcesEur J Appl Physiol. 2018 Aug;118(8):1715-1724.doi: 10.1007/s00421-018-3903-2. Epub 2018 May 31.Shear-wave velocity of the patellar tendon and quadriceps muscle is increased immediately after maximal eccentric exerciseLuke J Heales 1 2 , Rohitha Badya 1 , Brandon Ziegenfuss 1 , François Hug 3 4 5 , Jeff S Coombes 6 , Wolbert van den Hoorn 3 , Kylie Tucker 1 , Brooke K Coombes 7Affiliations PMID: 29855790 DOI: 10.1007/s00421-018-3903-2 AbstractPurpose: To determine whether stiffness of the patellar tendon and quadriceps muscles is altered immediately after and 48 h after a single bout of maximal eccentric exercise of the knee extensor muscles.Methods: Thirteen healthy individuals [group mean (SD) age 22.4 (3.5) years; 7 female] performed a single bout of maximal eccentric exercise of the non-dominant knee extensors, using an isokinetic dynamometer. Shear-wave velocity (an index of tissue stiffness) was recorded from the patellar tendon, vastus medialis (VM), rectus femoris (RF) and vastus lateralis (VL), before, following (post0), and 48 h after (post48) exercise. To investigate features of exercise induced muscle damage, maximal voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) and self-reported pain and stiffness (numerical rating scales 0 = no pain/stiffness to 100 = worst imaginable pain/stiffness) were measured before, post0, and post48 exercise. Serum creatine kinase (CK) was measured before and post48 exercise.Results: Compared to preexercise, MVIC decreased and self-reported pain and stiffness increased at post0 and post48 and CK levels increased at post48 (all p < 0.01). Compared to preexercise, shear-wave velocity was greater at post0 for the patellar tendon [15.9 (24.6)%, p = 0.01] and RF [23.6 (16.7)%, p < 0.001], each returning to baseline by post48. No significant differences were observed for VL or VM post0 or post48 exercise.Conclusion: Maximal eccentric exercise produced an immediate increase in the stiffness of the patellar tendon and RF, resolving by 48 h. As this change was not observed in VL and VM, future studies may explore heterogeneity within synergist muscles following eccentric exercise.