Muscle hypertrophy after partial denervation: a human case.
While undergoing long-term physiotherapy, a 41 year old woman with a chronic S1 radiculopathy developed progressive, painless enlargement of the weak calf. Gastrocnemius muscle biopsy disclosed changes of partial denervation and reinnervation, with small groups of type I and type II atrophic muscle fibres and abundant hypertrophic fibres of both types but mostly type II. It is postulated that, in addition to comprensatory work-induced type II muscle fibre hypertrophy, there was an element of (type I) stretched-induced hypertrophy of denervated fibres, a condition well recognised experimentally but not documented in man.
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006984:Hypertrophy; D007866:Leg / Q000294:innervation*; D009132:Muscles / Q000473:pathology; D009135:Muscular Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D009408:Nerve Compression Syndromes / Q000150:complications*; D005082:Physical Exertion; D013126:Spinal Nerve Roots; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed