Abstract
Study design
This is a cross-sectional descriptive study.
Objectives
To quantify differences in hand muscle morphology between persons with cervical spinal cord injury (SCI) and uninjured adults.
Setting
The study was performed at the Guangdong Work Injury Rehabilitation Hospital.
Methods
We quantified hand muscle cross-sectional area (CSA), thickness, and echo intensity (EI) in 18 persons with subacute to chronic SCI and 23 controls using ultrasound imaging.
Results
Mean SCI abductor pollicis brevis (APB), abductor digiti minimi (ADM), and first dorsal interosseous (FDI) CSA were ~26%, 43%, and 37% smaller than the control means, the deficit in the APB being less than the ADM (P < 0.05). Muscle thickness was also smaller after SCI, but deficits in ADM (31%) and FDI (20%) thickness were less than the CSA deficits (P < 0.05). In five SCI persons, APB CSA and/or opponens pollicis (OP) thickness were normal despite complete motor paralysis. Mean longitudinal image EI was 40% higher in the OP and 15% higher in the flexor pollicis brevis (FPB) after SCI (P < 0.05), suggesting denervation-induced infiltration of fat and fibrous tissues. OP EI was related to OP thickness (r = −0.6, P = 0.007, n = 18). Mean axial image EI was 10% higher in the APB and ADM after SCI (P < 0.05). There were no significant correlations between muscle morphological properties and clinical features in the SCI participants.
Conclusion
Our results indicate significant SCI atrophy and elevated EI that are muscle dependent.
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Data availability
The individual data that support the findings of this study are included in the published article and its Supplementary information file.
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Funding
This study was supported by the Guangzhou Science and Technology Program (Grant nos 201904010256 and 201704030039).
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CSK, HL, CNZ, and XY conceived the idea of the study and contributed to the writing of the protocol. HL, CSK, and CNZ acquired and analyzed the data; HL and XY recruited the participants. XY provided all medical support. CSK wrote the first version of the manuscript. All authors read and contributed to the final version of the paper.
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Klein, C.S., Liu, H., Zhao, C.N. et al. Quantitative ultrasound imaging of intrinsic hand muscles after traumatic cervical spinal cord injury. Spinal Cord 60, 199–209 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41393-021-00653-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41393-021-00653-1
