Anatomical variability of the soleus muscle: A key factor for the prognosis of injuries?

Calf muscles are among the most commonly injured muscles in athletes [1] (especially in amateurs). To precisely predict the prognosis of the injuries and the time of return to play (RTP), the anatomical location of calf muscles and the involvement of connective tissue have been studied through different imaging techniques. Having an accurate and early diagnosis is very important for the treatment of muscle injuries. In the calf, ultrasound (US) is the most widely used imaging method to detect lesions of the medial gastrocnemius, and even of the plantaris, with excellent diagnostic results [2, 3]. In the case of soleus muscle injuries, ultrasound has a very low diagnostic capability, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) should be used instead [4]. Because of the anatomical and functional complexity of the soleus muscle, there is no clear consensus on the directions to determine the prognosis of its lesions, despite the studies carried out to date [5,6,7]. In this context, our aim is to provide precise instructions to determine the prognosis of soleus muscle injuries.
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Bibliographic Details
Subjects:
Notations:biological and medical sciences
Tagging:Wade
Published in:Sports Medicine
Language:English
Published: 2022
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-022-01731-x
Volume:52
Issue:11
Pages:2565-2568
Document types:article
Level:advanced