Human limb skeletal muscle wasting and architectural remodeling during five to ten days intubation and ventilation in critical care

bmcanesthesiol.biomedcentral.com May 5, 2018

Using ultrasound, we have been able to demonstrate that muscle thickness and architecture of vastus lateralis undergo rapid changes during the early phase of admission to a critical care environment. Muscle loss in critically ill patients preferentially affects the lower limb, possibly due to the lower limb becoming prone to disuse atrophy. Muscle architecture of the thigh changes in the first 5 days of admission, in particular, we have demonstrated a correlation between muscle thickness and pennation angle.