The effect of exercise hypertrophy and disuse atrophy on muscle contractile properties: a mechanomyographic analysis.
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether mechanomyographic (MMG) determined contractile properties of the biceps brachii change during exercise-induced hypertrophy and subsequent disuse atrophy.


METHODS
Healthy subjects (mean ± SD, 23.7 ± 2.6 years, BMI 21.8 ± 2.4, n = 19) performed unilateral biceps curls (9 sets × 12 repetitions, 5 sessions per week) for 8 weeks (hypertrophic phase) before ceasing exercise (atrophic phase) for the following 8 weeks (non-dominant limb; treatment, dominant limb; control). MMG measures of muscle contractile properties (contraction time; Tc, maximum displacement; Dmax, contraction velocity; Vc), electromyographic (EMG) measures of muscle fatigue (median power frequency; MPF), strength measures (maximum voluntary contraction; MVC) and measures of muscle thickness (ultrasound) were obtained.


RESULTS
Two-way repeated measures ANOVA showed significant differences (P < 0.05) between treatment and control limbs. During the hypertrophic phase treatment MVC initially declined (weeks 1-3), due to fatigue (decline in MPF), followed by improvement against control during weeks 6-8. Between weeks 5 and 8 treatment, muscle thickness was greater than control, reflecting gross hypertrophy. MMG variables Dmax (weeks 2, 7) and Vc (weeks 7, 8) declined. During the atrophic phase, MVC (weeks 9-12) and muscle thickness (weeks 9, 10) initially remained high before declining to control levels, reflecting gross atrophy. MMG variables Dmax(weeks 9, 14) and Vc(weeks 9, 14, 15) also declined during the atrophic phase. No change in Tcwas found throughout the hypertrophic or atrophic phases.


CONCLUSIONS
MMG detects changes in contractile properties during stages of exercise-induced hypertrophy and disuse atrophy suggesting its applicability as a clinical tool in musculoskeletal rehabilitation.
Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, 4072, Australia. christian.than@uqconnect.edu.au.
Christian
C
Than
Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, 4072, Australia.
Danijel
D
Tosovic
Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, 4072, Australia.
Laura
L
Seidl
Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, 4072, Australia.
J
J
Mark Brown
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D012090:Cumulative Trauma Disorders / Q000503:physiopathology; D015444:Exercise; D006801:Humans; D006984:Hypertrophy / Q000473:pathology; D018763:Muscle Fatigue; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D020966:Muscular Disorders, Atrophic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009213:Myography / Q000379:methods*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D055815:Young Adult
Atrophy; Biceps brachii; Exercise; Hypertrophy; Mechanomyography (MMG)