Pennation Angle and Fascicle Length of Human Skeletal Muscles to Predict the Strength of an Individual Muscle Using Real-Time Ultrasonography: A Review of Literature

Abstract

Introduction: Muscle fascicle length and pennation angle are two muscle structural parameters which can be non-invasively measured using methods like ultrasonography. The aim of the present literature review was to introduce fascicle length and pennation angle for the estimation of the force of an individual skeletal muscle using ultrasonography. Methods and Materials : The data for the current review study was obtained from Pubmed, Science Direct, Scopous, Google Scholar, Sprinter Link Database, and other authoritative references available on the Internet and in libraries between the years 1995-2015. A total number of 113 articles were obtained. In sum, 45 articles were collected and reviewed. Keywords such as muscle, fascicle, length, angle, force, and ultrasonography were searched to fulfill the purpose of the study. Results: Detailed information on the pennation angle and fascicle length is essential to predict the force of an individual muscle. It has been suggested that changes in muscle fascicle angle and length correlated variably with the muscles force production. Conclusions: Real-time ultrasonography has been introduced as a valuable measurement tool for estimation of the force individual muscle via measuring the muscle architecture parameters, such as pennation angle and fascicle length. However, factors like physiological, anatomical, and biomechanical properties have to be considered when predicting the force of an individual skeletal muscle. Key words: Muscle, Fascicle, Length, Pennation angle, Force, Ultrasonography