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Hahn D, Weingarten T, Raiteri BJ. Gauging force by tapping tendons? Inaccurately in the human patellar tendon. J Biomech 2024; 173:112254. [PMID: 39098262 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2024.112254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2024] [Revised: 06/21/2024] [Accepted: 07/31/2024] [Indexed: 08/06/2024]
Abstract
Accurately estimating in vivo tendon load non-invasively remains a major challenge in biomechanics, which might be overcome by shear-wave tensiometry. Shear-wave tensiometry measures the speed of mechanically induced tendon shear waves by skin-mounted accelerometers. To gauge the feasibility and accuracy of this novel technique, we obtained patellar tendon shear wave speeds via shear-wave tensiometry during sustained or ramp voluntary contractions of the knee extensors in two experiments (n = 8 in both). In experiment one, participants produced a constant knee extension torque of ∼ 50 Nm at five different knee joint angles (i.e. variable tendon load), which resulted in estimated patellar tendon forces between 1005 ± 6N and 1182 ± 16 N. However, wave speed squared did not correlate with estimated tendon force within participants (rrm(31) = -0.19, p = 0.278). In experiment two, averaged correlation coefficients between normalized wave speed squared and torque of maximal and submaximal voluntary contractions across participants ranged between r = 0.43 and r = 0.94, while the time-varying correlation between these normalized signals ranged from r = -0.99 to r = 1.00. Further, the mean absolute errors (MAEs) between normalized wave speed squared and normalized torque across participants ranged between 0.03 and 0.54, which were larger than the MAEs between normalized torque and normalized summed EMG amplitude from the superficial quadriceps muscles (0.03-0.54 versus 0.06-0.26, respectively). In conclusion, there was no simple relation between shear wave speed squared and patellar tendon load, which severely limits the feasibility of shear-wave tensiometry for accurately estimating in vivo tendon load at the knee joint.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Hahn
- Human Movement Science, Faculty of Sport Science, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany; School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
| | - Tobias Weingarten
- Human Movement Science, Faculty of Sport Science, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
| | - Brent James Raiteri
- Human Movement Science, Faculty of Sport Science, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany; School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia.
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Zhang H, Elfar JC, Kwoh CK, Li ZM. Shear wave elastography of transverse carpal ligament increased with simulated carpal tunnel pressure. J Orthop Surg Res 2024; 19:389. [PMID: 38956611 PMCID: PMC11221182 DOI: 10.1186/s13018-024-04874-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2024] [Accepted: 06/25/2024] [Indexed: 07/04/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Elevation of carpal tunnel pressure is known to be associated with carpal tunnel syndrome. This study aimed to correlate the shear wave elastography in the transverse carpal ligament (TCL) with carpal tunnel pressures using a cadaveric model. METHODS Eight human cadaveric hands were dissected to evacuate the tunnels. A medical balloon was inserted into each tunnel and connected to a pressure regulator to simulate tunnel pressure in the range of 0-210 mmHg with an increment of 30 mmHg. Shear wave velocity and modulus was measure in the middle of TCL. RESULTS SWV and SWE were significantly dependent on the pressure levels (p < 0.001), and positively correlated to the tunnel pressure (SWV: R = 0.997, p < 0.001; SWE: R = 0.996, p < 0.001). Regression analyses showed linear relationship SWV and pressure (SWV = 4.359 + 0.0263 * Pressure, R2 = 0.994) and between SWE and pressure (SWE = 48.927 + 1.248 * Pressure, R2 = 0.996). CONCLUSION The study indicated that SWV and SWE in the TCL increased linearly as the tunnel pressure increased within the current pressure range. The findings suggested that SWV/SWE in the TCL has the potential for prediction of tunnel pressure and diagnosis of carpal tunnel syndrome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hui Zhang
- Hand Research Laboratory, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Arizona College of Medicine, 1501 N Campbell Avenue, Tucson, AZ, 85724, USA
| | - John C Elfar
- Hand Research Laboratory, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Arizona College of Medicine, 1501 N Campbell Avenue, Tucson, AZ, 85724, USA
| | - C Kent Kwoh
- Arthritis Center, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Zong-Ming Li
- Hand Research Laboratory, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Arizona College of Medicine, 1501 N Campbell Avenue, Tucson, AZ, 85724, USA.
- Arthritis Center, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA.
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA.
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Blank JL, Thelen DG, Roth JD. Regional shear wave speeds track regional axial stress in nonuniformly loaded fibrous soft tissues. J Biomech 2024; 167:112071. [PMID: 38593721 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2024.112071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2023] [Revised: 02/19/2024] [Accepted: 03/30/2024] [Indexed: 04/11/2024]
Abstract
Ligaments and tendons undergo nonuniform deformation during movement. While deformations can be imaged, it remains challenging to use such information to infer regional tissue loading. Shear wave tensiometry is a promising noninvasive technique to gauge axial stress and is premised on a tensioned beam model. However, it is unknown whether tensiometry can predict regional stress in a nonuniformly loaded structure. The objectives of this study were to (1) determine whether regional shear wave speed tracks regional axial stress in nonuniformly loaded fibrous soft tissues, and (2) determine the sensitivity of regional axial stress and shear wave speed to nonuniform load distribution and fiber alignment. We created a representative set of 12,000 dynamic finite element models of a fibrous soft tissue with probabilistic variations in fiber alignment, stiffness, and aspect ratio. In each model, we applied a randomly selected nonuniform load distribution, and then excited a shear wave and tracked its regional propagation. We found that regional shear wave speed was an excellent predictor of the regional axial stress (RMSE = 0.57 MPa) and that the nature of the regional shear wave speed-stress relationship was consistent with a tensioned beam model (R2 = 0.99). Variations in nonuniform load distribution and fiber alignment did not substantially alter the wave speed-stress relationship, particularly at higher loads. Thus, these findings suggests that shear wave tensiometry could provide a quantitative estimate of regional tissue stress in ligaments and tendons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathon L Blank
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Darryl G Thelen
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA; Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Joshua D Roth
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA; Department of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.
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Kerensky MJ, Paul A, Routkevitch D, Hersh AM, Kempski Leadingham KM, Davidar AD, Judy BF, Punnoose J, Williams A, Kumar A, Lehner K, Smith B, Son JK, Azadi JR, Shekhar H, Mercado-Shekhar KP, Thakor NV, Theodore N, Manbachi A. Tethered spinal cord tension assessed via ultrasound elastography in computational and intraoperative human studies. COMMUNICATIONS MEDICINE 2024; 4:4. [PMID: 38182729 PMCID: PMC10770351 DOI: 10.1038/s43856-023-00430-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2023] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 01/07/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Tension in the spinal cord is a trademark of tethered cord syndrome. Unfortunately, existing tests cannot quantify tension across the bulk of the cord, making the diagnostic evaluation of stretch ambiguous. A potential non-destructive metric for spinal cord tension is ultrasound-derived shear wave velocity (SWV). The velocity is sensitive to tissue elasticity and boundary conditions including strain. We use the term Ultrasound Tensography to describe the acoustic evaluation of tension with SWV. METHODS Our solution Tethered cord Assessment with Ultrasound Tensography (TAUT) was utilized in three sub-studies: finite element simulations, a cadaveric benchtop validation, and a neurosurgical case series. The simulation computed SWV for given tensile forces. The cadaveric model with induced tension validated the SWV-tension relationship. Lastly, SWV was measured intraoperatively in patients diagnosed with tethered cords who underwent treatment (spinal column shortening). The surgery alleviates tension by decreasing the vertebral column length. RESULTS Here we observe a strong linear relationship between tension and squared SWV across the preclinical sub-studies. Higher tension induces faster shear waves in the simulation (R2 = 0.984) and cadaveric (R2 = 0.951) models. The SWV decreases in all neurosurgical procedures (p < 0.001). Moreover, TAUT has a c-statistic of 0.962 (0.92-1.00), detecting all tethered cords. CONCLUSIONS This study presents a physical, clinical metric of spinal cord tension. Strong agreement among computational, cadaveric, and clinical studies demonstrates the utility of ultrasound-induced SWV for quantitative intraoperative feedback. This technology is positioned to enhance tethered cord diagnosis, treatment, and postoperative monitoring as it differentiates stretched from healthy cords.
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Affiliation(s)
- Max J Kerensky
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Abhijit Paul
- Discipline of Biological Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India
| | - Denis Routkevitch
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Andrew M Hersh
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Kelley M Kempski Leadingham
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - A Daniel Davidar
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Brendan F Judy
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Joshua Punnoose
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Autumn Williams
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Avisha Kumar
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Kurt Lehner
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Beth Smith
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Jennifer K Son
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Javad R Azadi
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Himanshu Shekhar
- Discipline of Electrical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India
| | - Karla P Mercado-Shekhar
- Discipline of Biological Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India
| | - Nitish V Thakor
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Nicholas Theodore
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Amir Manbachi
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- HEPIUS Innovation Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
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Bakenecker P, Weingarten T, Hahn D, Raiteri BJ. Residual force enhancement is affected more by quadriceps muscle length than stretch amplitude. eLife 2022; 11:77553. [PMID: 35579415 PMCID: PMC9129877 DOI: 10.7554/elife.77553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2022] [Accepted: 05/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Little is known about how muscle length affects residual force enhancement (rFE) in humans. We therefore investigated rFE at short, long, and very long muscle lengths within the human quadriceps and patellar tendon (PT) using conventional dynamometry with motion capture (rFETQ) and a new, non-invasive shear-wave tensiometry technique (rFEWS). Eleven healthy male participants performed submaximal (50% max.) EMG-matched fixed-end reference and stretch-hold contractions across these muscle lengths while muscle fascicle length changes of the vastus lateralis (VL) were captured using B-mode ultrasound. We found significant rFETQ at long (7±5%) and very long (12±8%), but not short (2±5%) muscle lengths, whereas rFEWS was only significant at the very long (38±27%), but not short (8±12%) or long (6±10%) muscle lengths. We also found significant relationships between VL fascicle length and rFETQ (r=0.63, p=0.001) and rFEWS (r=0.52, p=0.017), but relationships were not significant between VL fascicle stretch amplitude and rFETQ (r=0.33, p=0.126) or rFEWS (r=0.29, p=0.201). Squared PT shear-wave-speed-angle relationships did not agree with estimated PT force-angle relationships, which indicates that estimating PT loads from shear-wave tensiometry might be inaccurate. We conclude that increasing muscle length rather than stretch amplitude contributes more to rFE during submaximal voluntary contractions of the human quadriceps.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Daniel Hahn
- Human Movement Science, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
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