Abstract
Introduction: Decrease in the radiological density (RD) of muscle is associated with an increase in fat content, reduced insulin resistance, and reduced muscle strength. In an intensive care unit (ICU) setting, the changes in the muscle quality of ventilated patients remains to be elucidated.
Objective: The objective of this study was to quantify the loss of muscle cross-sectional area (CSA) and RD in the ICU patients who had been ventilated for ≥ 2 days.
Methods: Muscle CSA and RD of multifidus were assessed using computed tomography images and were measured in the ICU patients on admission and discharge. The paired t-test was used to assess changes in the outcomes, and the unpaired t-test was used to compare results between the ICU patients and age-matched healthy controls. All values of P < 0.05 were considered significant. The minimal clinically important difference (MCID) was calculated.
Results: Nine ICU patients and nine age-matched healthy controls were recruited for the study. Baseline characteristics of the muscle CSA, and RD were not significantly different between the patients on admitted to the ICU and the healthy controls (P > 0.05). However, on discharge from the ICU, the muscle CSA and RD were significantly reduced (P < 0.05). The MCIDs were 28.83 mm2 for CSA and 6.25 HU for RD.
Conclusion: The results of this study suggested that primary physical therapy intervention should be the focus for preventing the loss of muscle CSA and RD in the ICU ventilated patients.
- Copyright ©the authors 2016
