[Purpose] Lower-limb deep vein thrombosis is a complication of orthopedic surgery. A leg-exercise apparatus named "LEX" was developed as a novel active-exercise apparatus for deep vein thrombosis prevention. Muscle activity was evaluated to assess the effectiveness of exercise with LEX in the prevention. [Subjects] Eight healthy volunteers participated in this study. [Methods] Muscle activities...

This study examined the moment-producing capabilities of the gastrocnemius during isokinetic knee flexion tasks. Nine healthy men were tested using a Biodex isokinetic dynamometer. Each one completed 3 maximum repetitions at 3 angular velocities, 30, 75, and 150o/s, with his ankle braced in either full dorsiflexion or full plantar flexion. A computer model was used to simulate the experimental ...

Effects of gastrocnemius glycogen (Gly) concentration on changes in transverse relaxation time (T2; ms) were studied after 5-min plantar flexion at 25% of maximum voluntary contraction (MVC). Gastrocnemius Gly, phosphorus metabolites, and T2 were measured in seven subjects by using interleaved 13C/31P magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) at 4.7 T and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI; 1.5 T). Af...

Despite surgical innovation, the sensory and motor outcome after a peripheral nerve injury remains incomplete. One contributing factor to the poor outcome is prolonged denervation of the target organ, leading to apoptosis of both mature myofibres and satellite cells with subsequent replacement of the muscle tissue with fibrotic scar and adipose tissue. In this study, we investigated the express...

OBJECTIVE This case study presents the epidemiology, etiology, diagnostic criteria, and therapeutic interventions for a common clinical condition - gastrocnemius injury. CLINICAL FEATURES A 44-year old male presented with acute calf pain with a palpable defect, loss of range of motion, and loss of strength after sustaining a soft tissue injury to the lower leg. The differential diagnosis of t...

BACKGROUND Scarce evidence exists about effectiveness and mechanisms of action of Kinesio tape (KT) application. OBJECTIVES To evaluate the effect of KT application over the gastrocnemius or hamstring on range of motion and peak force. METHODS Thirty-six physical therapy students participated (18 per group). KT was applied with 30% tension for 48 h to: Group 1 - the gastrocnemius; Group 2 -...

BACKGROUND Plantarflexor tightness due to muscle degenerations has been frequently documented in children with spastic cerebral palsy but the contractile behavior of muscles during ambulation is largely unclear. Especially the adaptability of gastrocnemius muscle contraction on sloped surface could be relevant during therapy. METHODS Medial gastrocnemius contractions were measured during flat...

In this study, variations in lipolysis among different muscle groups were examined by measuring local net glycerol release in vivo in healthy, normal-weight subjects (n = 11) during rested, postabsorptive conditions. Microdialysis of the gastrocnemius, deltoid, and vastus lateralis muscle regions revealed that extracellular glycerol concentrations of these three muscle regions were 84.7 +/- 6.7...

The influence of ribose supplementation on skeletal muscle adenine salvage rates during recovery from intense contractions and subsequent muscle performance was evaluated using an adult rat perfused hindquarter preparation. Three minutes of tetanic contractions (60 tetani/min) decreased ATP content in the calf muscles by approximately 50% and produced an equimolar increase in IMP. Effective rec...