Skip to main content
PMC home page
Journal of Anatomy logoLink to Journal of Anatomy
. 1991 Jun;176:139–156.

Morphometry of the human thigh muscles. A comparison between anatomical sections and computer tomographic and magnetic resonance images.

C M Engstrom 1, G E Loeb 1, J G Reid 1, W J Forrest 1, L Avruch 1
PMCID: PMC1260321  PMID: 1917669

Abstract

The present study examined the relative accuracy and precision of MR and CT procedures for determining the CSA of individual muscles from the human thigh. Serial AN, CT and MR cross-sections were obtained from three cadaveric lower limbs. The MR measurements provided accurate and precise values for the CSAs of most thigh muscles, generally within +/- 7.5% of the AN standard. In contrast, CT tended systematically to overestimate the AN CSA by 10-20%. Retest procedures indicated that highly reliable measurements could be obtained from both MR and CT images. However, subjective interpretations of boundaries between closely apposed muscle bellies, particularly for muscles with more than one head, were necessary for resolving entities in the imaging records and this decreased the relative accuracy of MR and CT measures. Interestingly, MR records demonstrated an incomplete septum between vastus lateralis and vastus intermedius more prominently than AN cross-sections. The novel cross-validation procedures used in this study also highlighted several system-based errors in the MR records that, if undetected and left uncorrected, would have seriously biased the morphometric data obtained with this technique. In general, MR provides high resolution images of the human thigh muscles which may be used to obtain valid measures of the CSA of these structures.

Full text

PDF
139

Images in this article

142Fig. 1
on p.142
147Fig. 5
on p.147

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Alway S. E., Stray-Gundersen J., Grumbt W. H., Gonyea W. J. Muscle cross-sectional area and torque in resistance-trained subjects. Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1990;60(2):86–90. doi: 10.1007/BF00846026. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. An K. N., Kaufman K. R., Chao E. Y. Physiological considerations of muscle force through the elbow joint. J Biomech. 1989;22(11-12):1249–1256. doi: 10.1016/0021-9290(89)90227-3. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Bernotas L. A., Crago P. E., Chizeck H. J. Adaptive control of electrically stimulated muscle. IEEE Trans Biomed Eng. 1987 Feb;34(2):140–147. doi: 10.1109/tbme.1987.326038. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Bos C. F., Verbout A. J., Bloem J. L., van Leeuwen M. B. A correlative study of MR images and cryo-sections of the neonatal hip. Surg Radiol Anat. 1990;12(1):43–51. doi: 10.1007/BF02094125. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Bulcke J. A., Termote J. L., Palmers Y., Crolla D. Computed tomography of the human skeletal muscular system. Neuroradiology. 1979 Mar 23;17(3):127–136. doi: 10.1007/BF00339869. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Close R. I. Dynamic properties of mammalian skeletal muscles. Physiol Rev. 1972 Jan;52(1):129–197. doi: 10.1152/physrev.1972.52.1.129. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Crowninshield R. D., Brand R. A. A physiologically based criterion of muscle force prediction in locomotion. J Biomech. 1981;14(11):793–801. doi: 10.1016/0021-9290(81)90035-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Davies J., Parker D. F., Rutherford O. M., Jones D. A. Changes in strength and cross sectional area of the elbow flexors as a result of isometric strength training. Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1988;57(6):667–670. doi: 10.1007/BF01075986. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Edelstein W. A., Hutchison J. M., Johnson G., Redpath T. Spin warp NMR imaging and applications to human whole-body imaging. Phys Med Biol. 1980 Jul;25(4):751–756. doi: 10.1088/0031-9155/25/4/017. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Friederich J. A., Brand R. A. Muscle fiber architecture in the human lower limb. J Biomech. 1990;23(1):91–95. doi: 10.1016/0021-9290(90)90373-b. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Haxton H. A. Absolute muscle force in the ankle flexors of man. J Physiol. 1944 Dec 15;103(3):267–273. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1944.sp004075. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Hudash G., Albright J. P., McAuley E., Martin R. K., Fulton M. Cross-sectional thigh components: computerized tomographic assessment. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1985 Aug;17(4):417–421. doi: 10.1249/00005768-198508000-00002. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Häggmark T., Jansson E., Svane B. Cross-sectional area of the thigh muscle in man measured by computed tomography. Scand J Clin Lab Invest. 1978 Jun;38(4):355–360. doi: 10.3109/00365517809108434. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Häkkinen K., Keskinen K. L. Muscle cross-sectional area and voluntary force production characteristics in elite strength- and endurance-trained athletes and sprinters. Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1989;59(3):215–220. doi: 10.1007/BF02386190. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Ikai M., Fukunaga T. A study on training effect on strength per unit cross-sectional area of muscle by means of ultrasonic measurement. Int Z Angew Physiol. 1970;28(3):173–180. doi: 10.1007/BF00696025. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Kariya Y., Itoh M., Nakamura T., Yagi K., Kurosawa H. Magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy of thigh muscles in cruciate ligament insufficiency. Acta Orthop Scand. 1989 Jun;60(3):322–325. doi: 10.3109/17453678909149286. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Klitgaard H., Mantoni M., Schiaffino S., Ausoni S., Gorza L., Laurent-Winter C., Schnohr P., Saltin B. Function, morphology and protein expression of ageing skeletal muscle: a cross-sectional study of elderly men with different training backgrounds. Acta Physiol Scand. 1990 Sep;140(1):41–54. doi: 10.1111/j.1748-1716.1990.tb08974.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Komi P. V., Salonen M., Järvinen M., Kokko O. In vivo registration of Achilles tendon forces in man. I. Methodological development. Int J Sports Med. 1987 Mar;8 (Suppl 1):3–8. doi: 10.1055/s-2008-1025697. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Lorentzon R., Johansson C., Sjöström M., Fagerlund M., Fugl-Meyer A. R. Fatigue during dynamic muscle contractions in male sprinters and marathon runners: relationships between performance, electromyographic activity, muscle cross-sectional area and morphology. Acta Physiol Scand. 1988 Apr;132(4):531–536. doi: 10.1111/j.1748-1716.1988.tb08361.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Maughan R. J., Nimmo M. A. The influence of variations in muscle fibre composition on muscle strength and cross-sectional area in untrained males. J Physiol. 1984 Jun;351:299–311. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1984.sp015246. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Maughan R. J., Watson J. S., Weir J. Relationships between muscle strength and muscle cross-sectional area in male sprinters and endurance runners. Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1983;50(3):309–318. doi: 10.1007/BF00423237. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Maughan R. J., Watson J. S., Weir J. Strength and cross-sectional area of human skeletal muscle. J Physiol. 1983 May;338:37–49. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1983.sp014658. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. McGill S. M., Patt N., Norman R. W. Measurement of the trunk musculature of active males using CT scan radiography: implications for force and moment generating capacity about the L4/L5 joint. J Biomech. 1988;21(4):329–341. doi: 10.1016/0021-9290(88)90262-x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Narici M. V., Roi G. S., Landoni L. Force of knee extensor and flexor muscles and cross-sectional area determined by nuclear magnetic resonance imaging. Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1988;57(1):39–44. doi: 10.1007/BF00691235. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Narici M. V., Roi G. S., Landoni L., Minetti A. E., Cerretelli P. Changes in force, cross-sectional area and neural activation during strength training and detraining of the human quadriceps. Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1989;59(4):310–319. doi: 10.1007/BF02388334. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Otten E. Concepts and models of functional architecture in skeletal muscle. Exerc Sport Sci Rev. 1988;16:89–137. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Reid J. G., Costigan P. A., Comrie W. Prediction of trunk muscle areas and moment arms by use of anthropometric measures. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 1987 Apr;12(3):273–275. doi: 10.1097/00007632-198704000-00015. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  28. Reid J. G., Costigan P. A. Trunk muscle balance and muscular force. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 1987 Oct;12(8):783–786. doi: 10.1097/00007632-198710000-00013. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  29. Rugg S. G., Gregor R. J., Mandelbaum B. R., Chiu L. In vivo moment arm calculations at the ankle using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). J Biomech. 1990;23(5):495–501. doi: 10.1016/0021-9290(90)90305-m. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  30. Sambrook P., Rickards D., Cumming W. J. CT muscle scanning in the evaluation of patients with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). Neuroradiology. 1988;30(6):487–495. doi: 10.1007/BF00339688. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  31. Saunders R. D., Smith H. Safety aspects of NMR clinical imaging. Br Med Bull. 1984 Apr;40(2):148–154. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.bmb.a071961. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  32. Schantz P., Randall-Fox E., Hutchison W., Tydén A., Astrand P. O. Muscle fibre type distribution, muscle cross-sectional area and maximal voluntary strength in humans. Acta Physiol Scand. 1983 Feb;117(2):219–226. doi: 10.1111/j.1748-1716.1983.tb07200.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  33. Stuchly M. A. Applications of time-varying magnetic fields in medicine. Crit Rev Biomed Eng. 1990;18(2):89–124. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  34. Stytz M. R., Frieder O. Three-dimensional medical imaging modalities: an overview. Crit Rev Biomed Eng. 1990;18(1):1–25. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  35. Tabata I., Atomi Y., Kanehisa H., Miyashita M. Effect of high-intensity endurance training on isokinetic muscle power. Eur J Appl Physiol Occup Physiol. 1990;60(4):254–258. doi: 10.1007/BF00379392. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  36. Tracy M. F., Gibson M. J., Szypryt E. P., Rutherford A., Corlett E. N. The geometry of the muscles of the lumbar spine determined by magnetic resonance imaging. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 1989 Feb;14(2):186–193. doi: 10.1097/00007632-198902000-00007. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  37. Wallace W. A., Johnson F. Detection and correction of geometrical distortion in x-ray fluoroscopic images. J Biomech. 1981;14(2):123–125. doi: 10.1016/0021-9290(81)90171-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  38. Wang J. Z., Mezrich R. S., Sebok D. A. Image processing on Macintosh II: a practical boundary finding algorithm for biomedical measurement. Comput Med Imaging Graph. 1990 May-Jun;14(3):163–171. doi: 10.1016/0895-6111(90)90056-h. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  39. Willan P. L., Mahon M., Golland J. A. Morphological variations of the human vastus lateralis muscle. J Anat. 1990 Feb;168:235–239. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  40. Yamaguchi G. T., Zajac F. E. Restoring unassisted natural gait to paraplegics via functional neuromuscular stimulation: a computer simulation study. IEEE Trans Biomed Eng. 1990 Sep;37(9):886–902. doi: 10.1109/10.58599. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  41. Zhu X. P., Checkley D. R., Hickey D. S., Isherwood I. Accuracy of area measurements made from MR images compared with computed tomography. J Comput Assist Tomogr. 1986 Jan-Feb;10(1):96–102. doi: 10.1097/00004728-198601000-00021. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Journal of Anatomy are provided here courtesy of Anatomical Society of Great Britain and Ireland

RESOURCES