Imaging of Skeletal Muscle Mass: Ultrasound

As the detection and monitoring of skeletal mass are of primary importance in clinical settings and the ones more related to human performance, the need to assess changes in muscle size quickly and reliably is still fundamental. Muscle ultrasound represents a cheap and user-friendly, yet robust and reliable, method to monitor muscle mass in different scenarios. This chapter provides an overview of the different ultrasound-based methodologies employed for the in vivo measurement of muscle mass and architectural properties in human skeletal muscle. The main applications in loading, unloading, aging, and clinical/rehabilitation settings are also discussed.