Muscle and Tendon Properties during Menstrual Cycle

Abstract

The present study aimed to investigate the changes in the mechanical properties of human muscle and tendon during the menstrual cycle in vivo. The subjects were young healthy women (n=8, age 22.5±0.9 years) with a normal menstrual cycle. Cycle phases were divided into the menstrual (when estradiol and progesterone concentrations were low), ovulatory (when estradiol was elevatated and progesterone was low), and luteal (when progesterone was elevated). Measurements included maximal isometric voluntary contraction (MVC), muscle activation level (using interpolated twitch method), and tendon properties (using ultrasonography) in knee extensors and plantar flexors. No significant changes in MVC and muscle activation level were found during the menstrual cycle. Similarly, there were no significant differences in the maximal elongation and stiffness of tendons among the three phases. These results suggested that the changes in female steroid hormones during the menstrual cycle did not affect the mechanical properties of human muscle and tendon.

knee extension - plantar flexion - isometric - ultrasonography

References

• 1 Akeson WH, Woo SL, Amiel D, Doty DH, Rutherford L. Values of 17-beta oestradiol in prevention of contracture formation.  Ann Rheum Dis. 1975;  35 429-436
• 2 Arendt E, Dick R. Knee injury patterns among men and women in collegiate basketball and soccer: NCAA data and review of literature.  Am J Sports Med. 1995;  23 695-701
• 3 Becker R, Awiszus F. Physiological alterations of maximal voluntary quadriceps activation by changes of knee joint angle.  Muscle Nerve. 2001;  24 667-672
• 4 Dibrezzo R, Fort IL, Brown B. Relationships among strength, endurance, weight and body fat during three phases of the menstrual cycle.  J Sports Med Fitness. 1991;  31 89-94
• 5 Eiling E, Bryant AL, Petersen W, Murphy A, Hohmann E. Effects of menstrual-cycle hormone fluctuations on musculotendinous stiffness and knee joint laxity.  Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2007;  15 126-132
• 6 Fischer GM. Comparison of collagen dynamics in different tissues under the influence of estradiol.  Endocrinol. 1973;  93 1216-1218
• 7 Friden C, Hirschberg AL, Saartok T. Muscle strength and endurance do not significantly vary across 3 phases of the menstrual cycle in moderately active premenopausal women.  Clin J Sports Med. 2003;  13 238-241
• 8 Gur H, Akova B, Kucukoglu S. Continuous vetsus separate isokinetic test protocol: the effect of estradiol on the reproducibility of concentric and eccentric isokinetic measurements in knee muscles.  Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1999;  80 1024-1029
• 9 Gur H. Concentric and eccentric isokinetic measurements in knee muscles during the menstrual cycle: a special reference to reciprocal moment ratios.  Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 1997;  78 501-505
• 10 Huston LJ, Grrenfield MLVH, Woijtys EM. Anterior cruciate ligament injuries in the female athletes.  Clin Orthop. 2000;  372 50-63
• 11 Janse de Jonge XAK, Boot CRL, Thom JM, Ruell PA, Thompson MW. The influence of menstrual cycle phase on skeletal muscle contractile characteristics in humans.  J Physiol. 2001;  530 161-166
• 12 Karageanes S, Blackburn K, Vangelos Z. The association of the menstrual cycle with the laxity of the anterior cruciate ligament in adolescent female athletes.  Clin J Sports Med. 2000;  10 162-168
• 13 Kubo K, Ishida Y, Komuro T, Tsunoda N, Kanehisa H, Fukunaga T. Age-related differences in the force generation capabilities and tendon extensibilities of knee extensors and plantar flexors in men.  J Gerontol Med Sci. 2007;  62A 1252-1258
• 14 Kubo K, Kanehisa H, Fukunaga T. Comparison of elasticity of human tendon and aponeurosis in knee extensors and ankle plantar flexors in vivo.  J Appl Biomech. 2005;  21 129-142
• 15 Lebrun CM, MacKenzie DC, Prior JC, Taunton JE. Effects of menstrual cycle phase on athletic performance.  Med Sci Sports Exerc. 1995;  27 437-444
• 16 Liu SH, Al-Shaikh RA, Panossian V, Finerman GAM, Lane JM. Estrogen affects the cellular metabolism of the anterior cruciate ligament: a potential explanation for female athletic injury.  Am J Sports Med. 1997;  25 704-709
• 17 Miller BF, Hansen M, Olesen JL, Flyvbjerg A, Schwarz P, Babraj JA, Smith K, Rennie MJ, Kjaer M. No effect of menstrual cycle on myofibrillar and connective tissue protein synthesis in contracting skeletal muscle.  Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2007;  290 E163-E168
• 18 Phillips SK, Sanderson AG, Birch K, Bruce SA, Woledge RC. Changes in maximal voluntary force of human adductor pollicis muscle during the menstrual cycle.  J Physiol. 1996;  496 551-557
• 19 Pollard CD, Braun B, Hamill J. Influence of gender, estrogen and exercise on anterior knee laxity.  Clin Biomech. 2006;  21 1060-1066
• 20 Quadango D, Faquin L, Gei-Nam L, Kuminka W, Moffatt R. The menstrual cycle: Does it affect athletic performance?.  Physician Sports Med. 1991;  19 121-124
• 21 Rasanen T, Messner K. Estrogen-dependent tensile properties of the rabbit knee medial collateral ligament.  Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2000;  10 20-27
• 22 Reeves ND, Maganaris CN, Narici MV. Effect of strength training on human patella tendon mechanical properties of older individuals.  J Physiol. 2003;  548 971-981
• 23 Sarwar R, Niclos BB, Rutherford OM. Changes in muscle strength, relaxation rate and fatiguability during the human menstrual cycle.  J Physiol. 1996;  493 267-272
• 24 White MJ, Weekes C. No evidence for a change in the voluntary or electrically evoked contractile characteristics of the triceps surae during the human menstrual cycle.  J Physiol. 1998;  506 119
• 25 Wojtys EM, Boynton MD, Spindler KP, Lindenfeld TN. The effect of the menstrual cycle on anterior cruciate ligament injuries in women as determined by menstrual cycle.  Am J Sports Med. 2002;  30 182-188
• 26 Yu WD, Panossian V, Hatch JD, Liu SH, Finerman GAM. Combined effects of estrogen and progesterone on the anterior cruciate l.  Clin Orthop. 2001;  383 268-281

Correspondence