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Korean J Sports Med. 2015 Dec;33(2):59-66. Korean.
Published online December 07, 2015.  https://doi.org/10.5763/kjsm.2015.33.2.59
Copyright © 2015 The Korean Society of Sports Medicine
A Novel Method for the Assessment of Muscle Injuries
Chan Kim,1 Jung Hoon Chai,2 Bo Kyeong Kim,3 Chul Hyun Kim,2 and Sang Won Bae4
1Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Eulji University School of Medicine, Daejeon, Korea.
2Department of Sports Medicine, Soonchunyang University, Asan, Korea.
3Department of Social Physical Education, Korea Unversity, Seoul, Korea.
4Daejeon Teun Teun Hospital, Daejeon, Korea.

Correspondence: Sang Won Bae. Daejeon Teun Teun Hospital, 7 Mokjung-ro 19beon-gil, Jung-gu, Daejeon 34815, Korea. Tel: +82-42-220-2311, Fax: +82-42-220-2300, Email: yodeo@hanmail.net
Received November 16, 2015; Revised November 27, 2015; Accepted November 29, 2015.

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0) which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.


Abstract

Muscle injuries are very common in sports fields so diagnosis and prevention of them are as important as treatment in sports medicine. Many other devices for muscle diagnostics are provided, but non-invasiveness, cost, validity and reliability become a good measure of diagnosing and monitoring athletes. Tensiomyography (TMG) has been developed in the late 1980s to evaluate deficient muscle initially, and it was introduced into sports medicine and athletic training. It is a simple to use selective and non-invasive for measuring a skeletal muscle response. The method is based on the measurement of the radial displacement of muscle belly, which is caused by an electrical stimulator. The displacement is measured with an electric sensor which is connected to a computer system. It gives the information of maximal displacement of the belly (Dm) with following time parameters: delay time, contraction time (Tc), sustain time, and relaxation time. TMG studies usually focus on two common parameters: Tc and Dm. An increase in Tc indicates a muscle with a predominance of slow-twitch fibers. A decrease in Dm indicates an increase in muscle stiffness or tone. Other studies have been mainly associated with physiological characteristics of muscles, risk factors for muscle or ligament injuries, muscle fatigue, and muscle diseases such as multiple sclerosis. We think the application of TMG to the sports field can reduce the risk of sports injuries and increase performance of athletes. In medical field, it allows functional diagnosis of muscle strain, monitoring rehabilitation, and modifying treatment strategy effectively.

Keywords: Muscle injury; Tensiomyography; Muscle belly; Noninvasive

Figures


 Fig. 1
System components of TMG include ① sensor, ② electrodes, ③ electrical stimulator, and ℣ notebook (user interface). TMG: tensiomyography.
Click for larger image


Fig. 2
Positioning of the subject during rectus femoris (A) and biceps femoris (B) measurements.
Click for larger image


Fig. 3
TMG record with parameters' definitions. TMG: tensiomyography, Dm: maximal displacement, Td: delay time, Tc: contraction time, Ts: sustain time, Tr: relaxation time.
Click for larger image


Fig. 4
TMG responses in 9-year-old children. TMG: tensiomyography (adapted from Pisot et al. Kinesiology 2004;36:90-7).13)
Click for larger image

Notes

Conflict of Interest:No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

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