Achilles tendon morphology assessed using image based spatial frequency analysis is altered among healthy elite adolescent athletes compared to recreationally active controls
| Autor: | Aaron J. Engel, Hannes Kaplick, Lucie Risch, Kornelia Kulig, Greg Bashford, Frank Mayer, Michael Cassel |
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| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2019 |
| Předmět: |
Male
medicine.medical_specialty Adolescent Adolescent athletes Physical Therapy Sports Therapy and Rehabilitation Achilles Tendon 03 medical and health sciences 0302 clinical medicine Physical medicine and rehabilitation Medicine Humans Department Sport- und Gesundheitswissenschaften Orthopedics and Sports Medicine 030212 general & internal medicine ddc:610 Spatial frequency analysis Ultrasonography Achilles tendon Structural organization business.industry 030229 sport sciences medicine.disease Adaptation Physiological Tendon medicine.anatomical_structure Cross-Sectional Studies Athletes Female Fiber density Tendinopathy business Image based Sports |
| Popis: | Objectives: Although expected, tendon adaptations in adolescent elite athletes have been underreported. Morphologically, adaptations may occur by an increase in collagen fiber density and/or organization. These characteristics can be captured using spatial frequency parameters extracted from ultrasound images. This study aims to compare Achilles tendon (AT) morphology among sports-specific cohorts of elite adolescent athletes and to compare these findings to recreationally active controls by use of spatial frequency analysis. Design: Cross-sectional observational study. Method: In total, 334 healthy adolescent athletes from four sport categories (ball, combat, endurance, explosive strength) and 35 healthy controls were included. Longitudinal ultrasound scans were performed at the AT insertion and midportion. Intra-tendinous-morphology was quantified by performing spatial frequency analysis assessing eight parameters at standardized ROls. Increased values in five parameters suggest a higher structural organization, and in two parameters higher fiber density. One parameter represents a quotient combining both organization and fiber density. Results: Among athletes, only ball sport athletes exhibited an increase in one summative parameter at pre-insertion site compared to athletes from other sport categories. When compared to athletes, controls had significantly higher values of four parameters at pre-insertion and three parameters at midportion site reflecting differences in both, fiber organization and density. Conclusions: Intra-tendinous-morphology was similar in all groups of adolescent athletes. Higher values found in non-athletes might suggest higher AT fiber density and organization. It is yet unclear whether the lesser structural organization in young athletes represents initial AT pathology, or a physiological adaptive response at the fiber cross-linking level. (C) 2019 Sports Medicine Australia. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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