Ultrasound Echo Intensity of the Rectus Femoris Correlates Muscle Strength in the Post-Operative Rehabilitation of Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction Original Research
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Keywords
quadriceps muscle, sports medicine, ultrasonography
Abstract
Introduction: To assess the correlation between corrected rectus femoris echo intensity (C-RF-EI), rectus femoris cross-sectional area (RF-CSA), and quadriceps strength during a 6-month period after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACL-R).
Methods: A retrospective subanalysis of data collected in a randomized controlled clinical trial (IRB 19-008473. NCT ID NCT04302558). Twenty-eight patients aged 13 to 50 years undergoing ACL-R were assessed for C-RF-EI, RF-CSA, and quadriceps strength.
Results: The correlation (R) between C-RF-EI and RF-CSA after ACL-R ranged from −0.25 (24 weeks after ACL-R) to −0.34 (4 weeks after ACL-R), which is indicative of a negative linear association. The overall repeated measures correlation was −0.31 (P<.001). The correlation between C-RF-EI and isometric knee extensor strength at each time point ranged from −0.11 (4 and 8 weeks after ACL-R) to −0.41 (2 weeks before ACL-R), which suggests a weakly negative linear association. The overall repeated measures correlation was −0.21 (P=.01). C-RF-EI, RF-CSA, and knee extensor strength significantly differed with time after ACL-R (all P<.001). In comparison with 24 to 28 hours before ACL-R, postoperative C-RF-EI increased, and RF-CSA decreased.
Conclusions: These findings suggest that C-RF-EI is a feasible method for evaluating RF-CSA after ACL-R but not an effective method for evaluating progression of quadriceps strength.
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