Figure 2.

Contractile weakness of individual diaphragm fibers in critically ill patients. (A) The maximal absolute force generation of both slow- and fast-twitch diaphragm muscle fibers of critically ill patients was significantly lower compared with control patients. (B) Maximal tension, which is the absolute maximal force normalized to fiber cross-sectional area, was significantly lower in slow-twitch fibers of critically ill patients compared with control fibers, and fast-twitch fibers showed a trend toward a lower maximal tension. NS = not significant. *P < 0.05.