Integrated Application of Low-Intensity Pulsed Ultrasound in Diagnosis and Treatment of Atrophied Skeletal Muscle Induced in Tail-Suspended Rats

Abstract

Long-term exposure to microgravity leads to muscle atrophy, which is primarily characterized by a loss of muscle mass and strength and reduces one′s functional capability. A weightlessness-induced muscle atrophy model was established using the tail suspension test to evaluate the intervention or therapeutic effect of low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) on muscle atrophy. The rats were divided into five groups at random: the model group (B), the normal control group (NC), the sham-ultrasound control group (SUC), the LIPUS of 50 mW/cm2 radiation group (50 UR), and the LIPUS of 150 mW/cm2 radiation group (150 UR). Body weight, gastrocnemius weight, muscle force, and B-ultrasound images were used to evaluate muscle atrophy status. Results showed that the body weight, gastrocnemius weight, and image entropy of the tail suspension group were significantly lower than those of the control group (p p 2 and 150 mW/cm2 LIPUS were 150% and 165% of those in the B group. The gastrocnemius weights were both 135% of those in the B group. This suggests that ultrasound can, to a certain extent, prevent muscular atrophy.

Keywords

• muscle atrophy
• LIPUS
• gastrocnemius force
• entropy
• angular second moment