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Abstract
The purpose of this study is to compare the side-to-side thickness and asymmetry in the lateral abdominal (LAM) wall muscle group between fencing players and matched controls. Twenty fencing players (10 males and 10 females) and 20 matched controls participated in this study. The resting thicknesses of the transversus abdominis (TrA), internal oblique (IO), and external oblique (EO) of the LAM on both sides of the abdominal wall were measured in each group using 7.5 MHz linear array ultrasonography. Statistical analysis showed that the asymmetry of the fencers was 15% TrA, 13% IO, and 15% EO, whereas the control group showed 5% TrA, 5% IO, and 6% EO. The LAM was more asymmetric in the fencers than in the controls (p＜0.05). The thickness of the right TrA was 0.37 cm in the controls, which was significantly greater than the 0.29 cm thickness in the fencers (p＜0.05). The thicknesses of the left TrA and both IO and EO did not differ significantly between fencers and controls (p＞0.05). The thickness of the TrA, IO, and EO of the side-to-side LAM wall was more asymmetric in the fencers than in the controls. This suggests that clinicians may find benefits in providing scientific baseline data on muscle asymmetry when treating and managing fencing athletes.
References
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Fig. 1.
Ultrasound imaging of the lateral abdominal wall muscles taken during the resting state. (A) Fencing group, (B) control group. EO: external oblique, IO: internal oblique, TrA: transversus abdominis.
Fig. 2.
Differences between the fencing and control groups in the percent of asymmetry in muscle thickness of the lateral abdominal wall. TrA: transversus abdominis, IO: internal oblique, EO: external oblique.
Fig. 3.
Lateral abdominal wall thickness in fencing and control group. Rt: right, TrA: transversus abdominis, Lt: left, IO: internal oblique, EO: external oblique.
Table 1.
Demographic characteristics of subjects
Table 2.
Comparison of the asymmetry of the lateral abdominal muscle between the fencing and matched control groups
| Asymmetric | Fencing group (n=20) | Control group (n=20) | t-value | p-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TrA (%) | 15.80±12.15 | 5.81±2.36 | 3.61 | 0.002∗ |
| IO (%) | 13.07±11.24 | 5.77±3.90 | 2.74 | 0.011∗ |
| EO (%) | 15.40±14.21 | 6.48±3.27 | 2.73 | 0.012∗ |
Table 3.
Comparison of the lateral abdominal muscle thickness between the fencing and matched control groups
| Thickness | Fencing group (n=20) | Control group (n=20) | p-value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Right TrA (cm) | 0.29±0.85 | 0.37±0.84 | 0.006∗ |
| Left TrA (cm) | 0.32±0.07 | 0.36±0.08 | 0.073 |
| Right IO (cm) | 0.88±0.20 | 0.83±0.19 | 0.453 |
| Left IO (cm) | 0.85±0.17 | 0.83±0.18 | 0.686 |
| Right EO (cm) | 0.69±0.12 | 0.69±0.22 | 0.972 |
| Left EO (cm) | 0.71±0.14 | 0.69±0.22 | 0.626 |
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