Fiber hypertrophy in rat extraocular muscle following lateral rectus resection.
Compensatory hypertrophy of muscle fibers occurs when tension on a skeletal muscle is increased. We looked for this phenomenon in response to strabismus surgery by performing a large right lateral rectus resection in 16 rats. Muscle fiber diameters of all horizontal rectus muscles were measured at 2-week postoperative intervals. Significant fiber hypertrophy occurred in both the antagonist right medial rectus and the resected right lateral rectus within 4 weeks. Fiber diameter subsequently returned to baseline in both muscles. We postulate that fiber hypertrophy in this setting may be a compensatory response to increased elastic load.
Christiansen
S
S
Department of Ophthalmology, University of Kentucky, Lexington.
Madhat
M
M
Baker
L
L
Baker
R
R
D000818:Animals; D006984:Hypertrophy; D008297:Male; D009801:Oculomotor Muscles / Q000294:innervation / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains