Quantitative muscle ultrasound and quadriceps strength in patients with post-polio syndrome.

Introduction: We investigated whether muscle ultrasound can distinguish muscles affected by post-polio syndrome (PPS) from healthy muscles and whether severity of ultrasound abnormalities is associated with muscle strength.
Methods: Echo intensity, muscle thickness, and isometric strength of the quadriceps muscles were measured in 48 patients with PPS and 12 healthy controls.
Results: Patients with PPS had significantly higher echo intensity and lower muscle thickness than healthy controls. In patients, both echo intensity and muscle thickness were associated independently with muscle strength. A combined measure of echo intensity and muscle thickness was more strongly related to muscle strength than either parameter alone.
Conclusions: Quantitative ultrasound distinguishes healthy muscles from those affected by PPS, and measures of muscle quality and quantity are associated with muscle strength. Hence, ultrasound could be a useful tool for assessing disease severity and monitoring changes resulting from disease progression or clinical intervention in patients with PPS.
(© 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)