Multimodal imaging of tibialis anterior muscle adaptations to neutral-position immobilization.

ABSTRACT: Muscle disuse atrophy is a frequent consequence of therapeutic immobilization following sport injuries, bone fractures, and ligament tears, often resulting in marked reduction of muscle volume, mass, and strength. Despite the widespread use of neutral-position limb immobilization in clinical practice, its physiological effects remain insufficiently characterized. To address this gap, we employed thermographic, tomographic, and ultrasound imaging to assess how neutral-position immobilization (Imm) affects the tibialis anterior, a predominantly fast-twitch ankle dorsiflexor muscle that plays a key role in foot deceleration after heel strike, provides functional stability during gait preventing falls and contributes substantially to load absorption, in twenty-seven young male Wistar rats afte

SUBMITTER: Martinez-Mendez SA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12857925 | biostudies-literature | 2026

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature