Prevalence of morphological and mechanical stiffness alterations of mid Achilles tendons in asymptomatic marathon runners before and after a competition

Objective To determine the prevalence of morphological and mechanical stiffness alterations at the mid Achilles tendon in asymptomatic marathon runners before and after a competition. To assess the relationship between pre-existing Achilles tendon alterations and pain after running. Materials and me...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Skeletal radiology 2015-08, Vol.44 (8), p.1119-1127
Main Authors: Ooi, C. C., Schneider, M. E., Malliaras, P., Counsel, P., Connell, D. A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Achilles Tendon - diagnostic imaging
Achilles Tendon - physiopathology
Adaptation, Physiological - physiology
Adult
Elastic Modulus - physiology
Elasticity Imaging Techniques - methods
Female
Humans
Imaging
Male
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
Nuclear Medicine
Orthopedics
Pathology
Physical Endurance - physiology
Radiology
Reproducibility of Results
Running
Running - physiology
Scientific Article
Sensitivity and Specificity
Stress, Mechanical
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Summary:Objective To determine the prevalence of morphological and mechanical stiffness alterations at the mid Achilles tendon in asymptomatic marathon runners before and after a competition. To assess the relationship between pre-existing Achilles tendon alterations and pain after running. Materials and methods All marathon runners from a local running club who were participating in the Melbourne Marathon 2013 (full marathon category) were invited for conventional ultrasound and sonoelastography 1 week leading up to the marathon and again within 3 days post-marathon. Another group of active, healthy individuals not involved in running activities were recruited as controls. Intratendinous morphological (tendon thickness, hypoechogenicities), Doppler as well as stiffness properties of the Achilles were recorded. Achilles tendon pain was evaluated using the visual analogue scale (VAS) and Victorian Institute of Sports Assessment-Achilles (VISA-A). Results Twenty-one asymptomatic runners (42 Achilles tendons) and 20 healthy controls (40 Achilles tendons) were examined. On the pre-marathon evaluation, runners showed significantly more morphological changes on B-mode ultrasound compared to the controls ( p  
ISSN:0364-2348
1432-2161
DOI:10.1007/s00256-015-2132-6