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Special Issue "Clinical Application and Assessment of Ultrasound Imaging"

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A special issue of Journal of Clinical Medicine (ISSN 2077-0383). This special issue belongs to the section "Nuclear Medicine & Radiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 March 2023) | Viewed by 6680

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Prof. Dr. David Rodríguez Sanz

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Facultad de Enfermería, Fisioterapia y Podología, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain
Interests: feet; ligaments; muscles; musculoskeletal disorders; sports; tendons; ultrasonography
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Clinical assessment in health can solve many questions regarding diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis in patients. Is a key point in the daily activities of healthcare providers. There are many tools that could add extra value to the insight of clinicians, such as ultrasound evaluation. Ultrasonography may be considered a useful tool in medicine and physical therapy, permitting novel static and dynamic evaluations for different body structures such as joint, nerve, muscle, tendon, and ligament. In recent years, new image-analysis software has been developed to obtain relationships, new information or other interesting data in different body regions related with clinical assessment.

I would like to invite researchers from across the world to contribute their knowledge and research in the form of novel and original articles and reviews for this Special Issue entitled “Clinical Application and Assessment of Ultrasound Imaging”. The purpose of this Special Issue is to highlight the benefits of the clinical application of ultrasound imaging for different pathologies and related with the health of the general population as well as clinical assessment.

Prof. Dr. David Rodríguez Sanz
Guest Editor

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Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Clinical Medicine is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

clinical assessment
ultrasound evaluation
test
diagnosis
muscle
tendon

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

Open AccessArticle

Architectural Ultrasound Pennation Angle Measurement of Lumbar Multifidus Muscles: A Reliability Study

Cristina Monsalve-Vicente

Daniel Muñoz-Zamarro

Nicolás Cuenca-Zaldívar

Samuel Fernández-Carnero

Francisco Selva-Sarzo

Susana Nunez-Nagy

Fermin Naranjo-Cinto

and

Tomás Gallego-Izquierdo

J. Clin. Med. 2022, 11(17), 5174; https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm11175174 - 01 Sep 2022

Viewed by 912

Abstract

The pennation angle has been shown to be a relevant parameter of muscle architecture. This parameter has not previously been measured in the lumbar multifidus musculature, and it is for this reason that it has been considered of great interest to establish an assessment protocol to generate new lines of research in the future. Objective: The objective of this study was to establish a protocol for measuring the pennation angle of the multifidus muscles, with a study of intra-rater and interrater reliability values. Design: This was a reliability study following the recommendations of the Guidelines for Reporting Reliability and Agreement Studies (GRRAS). Setting: The study was carried out at University of Alcalá, Department of Physiotherapy. Subjects: Twenty-seven subjects aged between 18 and 55 years were recruited for this study. Methods: Different ultrasound images of the lumbar multifidus musculature were captured. Subsequently, with the help of ImageJ software, the pennation angle of this musculature was measured. Finally, a complex statistical analysis determined the intra- and interrater reliability. Results: The intra-rater reliability of the pennation angle measurement protocol was excellent for observer 1 in the measurement of the left-sided superficial multifidus 0.851 (0.74, 0.923), and for observer 2 in the measurement of the right-sided superficial 0.711 (0.535, 0.843) and deep multifidus 0.886 (0.798, 0.942). Interrater reliability was moderate to poor, and correlation analysis results were high for thickness vs. pennation angle. Conclusions: The designed protocol for ultrasound measurement of the pennation angle of the lumbar multifidus musculature has excellent intra-rater reliability values, supporting the main conclusions and interpretations. Normative ranges of pennation angles are reported. High correlation between variables is described. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Clinical Application and Assessment of Ultrasound Imaging)

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Open AccessArticle

Effectiveness of Ultrasonography Visual Biofeedback of the Diaphragm in Conjunction with Inspiratory Muscle Training on Muscle Thickness, Respiratory Pressures, Pain, Disability, Quality of Life and Pulmonary Function in Athletes with Non-Specific Low Back Pain: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Daniel Marugán-Rubio

J. L. Chicharro

Ricardo Becerro-de-Bengoa-Vallejo

Marta Elena Losa-Iglesias

David Rodríguez-Sanz

Davinia Vicente-Campos

Nerea Molina-Hernández

and

César Calvo-Lobo

J. Clin. Med. 2022, 11(15), 4318; https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm11154318 - 25 Jul 2022

Viewed by 1806

Abstract

Diaphragmatic weakness and thickness reduction have been detected in athletes with lumbopelvic pain (LPP). Strength training of inspiratory muscles may be necessary for athletes with LPP. Inspiratory muscle training (IMT) and visual biofeedback by rehabilitative ultrasound imaging (RUSI) have been proposed as possible interventions. Here, we determine the effectiveness of visual biofeedback by RUSI with a proposed novel thoracic orthotic device to facilitate diaphragmatic contraction in conjunction with high-intensity IMT in athletes with non-specific LPP. A single-blinded, parallel-group, randomized clinical trial was performed (NCT04097873). Of 86 participants assessed for eligibility, 64 athletes with non-specific LPP (39 males and 25 females; mean age, 33.15 ± 7.79 years) were recruited, randomized, analyzed and received diaphragm visual biofeedback by RUSI in conjunction with high-intensity IMT (RUSI+IMT; n = 32) or isolated high-intensity IMT (IMT; n = 32) interventions for 8 weeks. Diaphragmatic thickness during normal breathing, maximum respiratory pressures, pain intensity, pressure pain threshold on lumbar musculature, disability by the Roland–Morris questionnaire, quality of life by the SF-12 questionnaire and spirometry respiratory parameters were assessed at baseline and after the 8-week intervention. There were significant differences (p = 0.015), within a medium effect size (Cohen’s d = 0.62) for the forced expiratory volume in 1-s (FEV₁), which was increased in the RUSI+IMT intervention group relative to the IMT alone group. Adverse effects were not observed. The rest of the outcomes did not show significant differences (p > 0.05). Diaphragm visual biofeedback by RUSI with the proposed novel thoracic orthotic device in conjunction with high-intensity IMT improved lung function by increasing FEV₁ in athletes with non-specific LPP. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Clinical Application and Assessment of Ultrasound Imaging)

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Open AccessArticle

Persistent Left Superior Vena Cava Significance in Prenatal Diagnosis—Case Series

Mircea-Octavian Poenaru

and

J. Clin. Med. 2022, 11(14), 4020; https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm11144020 - 12 Jul 2022

Viewed by 1282

Abstract

The persistent left superior vena cava (PLSVC) is a congenital heart anomaly reported in 0.3–0.5% of the general population and can be associated with congenital heart diseases in up to 8% of cases. Prenatal identification of PLSVC is important to prompt an extended cardiac and extracardiac fetal examination. We retrospectively reevaluated anomaly scans performed in our unit in a 2-year interval according to the national guidelines to evaluate the incidence of PLSVC and its association with prenatal morbidity. In our population, the incidence of PLSVC was 0.31%, and we found a low association with cardiac and extracardiac anomalies. The standard sections (three-vessel and trachea view, four-chamber view and outflow tract’s view) are insufficient to exclude cardiac anomalies whenever PLSVC is found. In our case series, only one newborn required postnatal surgery for total pulmonary vein anomaly, and at 2 years of life all babies had a normal evolution. Prenatal diagnosis of PLSVC can raise counseling issues; therefore, awareness of its good outcome when isolated and need for an extended examination to rule out other anomalies is very important. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Clinical Application and Assessment of Ultrasound Imaging)

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Open AccessArticle

Novel Ultrasound Anatomical Measurement of the Deep Transverse Metatarsal Ligament: An Intra-Rater Reliability and Inter-Rater Concordance Study

María del Mar Ruiz-Herrera

Félix Marcos-Tejedor

Alberto Aldana-Caballero

Alicia Mohedano-Moriano

Javier Aceituno-Gómez

and

Juan José Criado-Álvarez

J. Clin. Med. 2022, 11(9), 2553; https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm11092553 - 02 May 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2146

Abstract

Insufficient space below the Deep Transverse Metatarsal Ligament (DTML) could be an etiological factor for Morton’s Neuroma (MN). To date, there is a lack of studies measuring the space below the DTML. For this reason, this study assesses the intra- and inter-rater concordance and reproducibility of measurements of the space below the DTML between the third and the fourth metatarsal heads (M3 and M4) using ultrasound imaging to assess and verify the reliability and reproducibility of measurements of the space under the DTML. Forty feet from twenty patients were examined using ultrasound by three trained evaluators at two different times. The two measurements taken on each foot were: base (b)—distance between M3 and M4, and height (h)—distance between the DTML and the plantar skin surface. This was a quantitative, observational, analytical study. The concordance rate between observers for measurements of height and base were 98.5% and 99.5%, respectively. The mean area obtained of the space was 54.6 mm² and 57.2 mm² for both the left and right foot (p > 0.05). Reproducibility over time calculated in pre- and post-measurements showed an intraclass correlation coefficient of 1.00 (95%CI: 0.99–1.00), which leads us to conclude that the measurements are perfectly reproducible. Both measurements (height and base) of the space under the DTML, performed by ultrasound, are reliable and reproducible. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Clinical Application and Assessment of Ultrasound Imaging)

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