ArticlePloS one2016
Effect of Transducer Orientation on Errors in Ultrasound Image-Based Measurements of Human Medial Gastrocnemius Muscle Fascicle Length and Pennation.
Article in PloS one, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 26 papers.
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Who cites it
26 citing papers in PubMed.
- Trial
- 3D ultrasonography reveals a twisted proximal aponeurosis within the biceps femoris long head.European journal of applied physiology · 2026Article
- Physiological Cross-Sectional Surfaces: A Method for Estimating Muscle Functional Capacity from 3D Digital Models of Fiber Architecture.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Magnetically driven triboelectric nanogenerator for a wireless, versatile energy transfer system.Science advances · 2025Article
- Assessment of the supraspinatus muscle fiber architecture with diffusion tensor imaging in healthy volunteers.Insights into imaging · 2024Article
- Three-dimensional architecture and moment arms of human rotator cuff muscles in vivo: Interindividual, intermuscular, and intramuscular variations.Journal of anatomy · 2024Article
- Reproducibility of freehand vs. foam cast as well as the intrarater reliability of foam cast ultrasound scans assessing the muscle architecture and tissue organization of the gastrocnemius medialis and vastus lateralis muscles.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2024Article
- Reliability of assessing skeletal muscle architecture and tissue organization of the gastrocnemius medialis and vastus lateralis muscle using ultrasound and spatial frequency analysis.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2024Article
- The Applicability of Shear Wave Elastography to Assess Myotendinous Stiffness of Lower Limbs during an Incremental Isometric Strength Test.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Article
- Article
- Typical m. triceps surae morphology and architecture measurement from 0 to 18 years: A narrative review.Journal of anatomy · 2022Review
- Hamstring muscle architecture assessed sonographically using wide field of view: A reliability study.PloS one · 2022Article
- Implementing Ultrasound Imaging for the Assessment of Muscle and Tendon Properties in Elite Sports: Practical Aspects, Methodological Considerations and Future Directions.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2021Review
- Objective Assessment of Regional Stiffness in Vastus Lateralis with Different Measurement Methods: A Reliability Study.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Article
- Reliability of ultrasonographic measurement of muscle architecture of the gastrocnemius medialis and gastrocnemius lateralis.PloS one · 2021Article
- Biceps Femoris Long Head Muscle Fascicles Actively Lengthen During the Nordic Hamstring Exercise.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2021Article
- Obtaining Quality Extended Field-of-View Ultrasound Images of Skeletal Muscle to Measure Muscle Fascicle Length.Journal of visualized experiments : JoVE · 2020Article
- The Effect on Muscle Hardness of Acupuncture Stimulation Using Low-reactive Level Laser Therapy and Silver Spike Point Therapy, along with Stretching.Laser therapy · 2020Article
- Muscle Fascicles Exhibit Limited Passive Elongation Throughout the Rehabilitation of Achilles Tendon Rupture After Percutaneous Repair.Frontiers in physiology · 2020Article
- Architecture of the Triceps Surae Muscles Complex in Patients with Spastic Hemiplegia: Implication for the Limited Utility of the Silfverskiöld Test.Journal of clinical medicine · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Ultrasound imaging is often used to measure muscle fascicle lengths and pennation angles in human muscles in vivo. Theoretically the most accurate measurements are made when the transducer is oriented so that the image plane aligns with muscle fascicles and, for measurements of pennation, when the image plane also intersects the aponeuroses perpendicularly. However this orientation is difficult to achieve and usually there is some degree of misalignment. Here, we used simulated ultrasound images based on three-dimensional models of the human medial gastrocnemius, derived from magnetic resonance and diffusion tensor images, to describe the relationship between transducer orientation and measurement errors. With the transducer oriented perpendicular to the surface of the leg, the error in measurement of fascicle lengths was about 0.4 mm per degree of misalignment of the ultrasound image with the muscle fascicles. If the transducer is then tipped by 20°, the error increases to 1.1 mm per degree of misalignment. For a given degree of misalignment of muscle fascicles with the image plane, the smallest absolute error in fascicle length measurements occurs when the transducer is held perpendicular to the surface of the leg. Misalignment of the transducer with the fascicles may cause fascicle length measurements to be underestimated or overestimated. Contrary to widely held beliefs, it is shown that pennation angles are always overestimated if the image is not perpendicular to the aponeurosis, even when the image is perfectly aligned with the fascicles. An analytical explanation is provided for this finding.
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