Ultrasound of the left shoulder girdle in professional violists and violinists: A pilot study

Musculoskeletal problems in elite orchestral musicians have been reported a s common. Despite this, the underlying health problems seems to be underrec ognized and underresearched. This pilot study details measurements, using u ltrasound, to investigate the reaction of muscles and tendons in the left s houlder girdle of elite violinists and violists to performance, as a way of exploring muscle response to activity. The tendon of the long head of the biceps, the supraspinatus tendon, the trapezius muscle, upper and mid, and the rhomboid muscle of 15 violinists and violists were measured, using ultr asound, at set intervals of time after performing. Significant increases in size were demonstrated from baseline at 12, 18, and 24 hours for biceps te ndon; 12 and 18 hours for the upper trapezius and mid-trapezius, medially; and 12 hours for the mid-trapezius, laterally. The mean percentage increase s in size (+/- 2 X SE) for each were: 14.23 (+/-8.3), 16.8(+/-9.9), 13.6 (/- 10.9); 11.6(+/-7.9), 11.9(+/-9.2); 26.2(+/- 13.15), 32.3(+/- 29.9); and 23.6(+/- 12.23), respectively. The p-values for these measurements ranged f rom 0.001 to 0.04; significance was set at <0.05. The supraspinatus tendon and lateral rhomboid muscle did not show any significant change. This pilot study indicates that ultrasound is effective in demonstrating changes in m uscle over time, but as no normative data have yet been collected, no signi ficant conclusions can be drawn, indicating a need for continuing research into this area using ultrasound.