Muscle ultrasound quantifies disease progression over time in infants and young boys with duchenne muscular dystrophy

Craig M. Zaidman, Elizabeth C. Malkus, Anne M. Connolly

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

43 Scopus citations

Abstract

Introduction: Quantitative muscle ultrasound (QUS) in boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) shows increased echointensity as muscle is replaced with fat and fibrosis. Studies of quantitative ultrasound in infants/young boys with DMD over time have not been reported. Methods: We used calibrated muscle backscatter (cMB), a reproducible measure of ultrasound echointensity, to quantify muscle pathology in 5 young boys with DMD (ages 0.5-2.8 years) over 17-29 months. We compared the results with repeated assessments of function (n=4) and with muscle ultrasound images from a cross-section of 6 male controls (0.6-3.1 years). Results: cMB in boys with DMD increased (worsened) over time (P<0.001), whereas function improved. After age 2 years, cMB in most (4 of 5) boys with DMD was higher than in any control. Conclusions: QUS measures disease progression in young boys with DMD despite functional improvements. QUS could be employed as an outcome measure for serial assessment of young boys with DMD.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)334-338
Number of pages5
JournalMuscle and Nerve
Volume52
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 1 2015

Keywords

  • Backscatter
  • Children
  • Duchenne muscular dystrophy
  • Muscle
  • Myopathy
  • Ultrasound

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