The Achilles tendon begins near the mid-calf and inserts into the posterior of the calcaneus, connecting the gastrocnemius and soleus muscles to the ankle. It is surrounded by a connective tissue sheath (paratenon, or 'paratendon'), rather than a true synovial sheath. The paratenon, which is very vascular and highly innervated, stretches with movement, allowing maximum gliding action. Near the ...

Disorders of the peripheral nerves of domestic animals have been recorded in a number of dog breeds2-’.” and in a few cases of However, the majority have been of unknown etiology.1.2.6.8.11 Distal symmetrical polyneuropathies have been recognized in genetical, toxic, nutritional, and metabolic disorders in humansI4 and other animals.’’ The disease is attributed to the dying-back process, the co...

Background The functional impairment caused by peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is difficult to evaluate objectively and quantitatively. Current methods used to assess the efficacy of therapeutic interventions in patients with PAD are limited by variability and changes representing the placebo effect. Recently, Gadolinium-enhanced first-pass (FP) MRI has emerged as a new method to assess perfu...

Five-year-old twin boys were admitted to our hospital with history of progressive difficulty in walking, climbing stairs and frequent falls. There was delay in the attainment of motor milestones. Both boys had bilateral calf muscle hypertrophy with weakness of proximal muscles of lower and upper limbs. Serum creatinine kinase levels were grossly elevated (>11,000 IU/L) in both boys, and muscle ...

A 5-day-old female Holstein calf was necropsied because of lethargy, recumbency and anorexia. At necropsy, multiple gross defects were evident in several organs, including unclosed sutures of skull bones, asymmetrical orbits, doming of the skull bones, hydrocephalus, hydranencephaly, cleft palate, brachygnathia, ventricular septal defect, mitral valve dysplasia and rudimentary lungs. On microsc...

Background It is reported that 75% of long distance runners use a rearfoot strike (RFS) technique. This percentage decreases in faster runners, where the incidence of midfoot and forefoot strikers (FFS) increases [1]. It is possible that FFS better utilises the passive-elastic mechanisms of the lower limb reducing energy cost. Williams et al. [2] found runners who converted from RFS to FFS duri...

BACKGROUND Earlier studies have shown that adrenomedullin (AM), a potent vasodilator peptide, has a variety of cardiovascular effects. However, whether AM has angiogenic potential remains unknown. This study investigated whether AM gene transfer induces therapeutic angiogenesis in chronic hind limb ischemia. METHODS AND RESULTS Ischemia was induced in the hind limb of 21 Japanese White rabbit...

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is characterized by atherosclerotic blockages of the arteries supplying the lower extremities, which cause a progressive accumulation of ischemic injury to the skeletal muscles of the lower limbs. This injury includes altered metabolic processes, damaged organelles, and compromised bioenergetics in the affected muscles. The objective of this study was to explor...

Q1: What is the likely diagnosis? The differential diagnosis of calf swelling includes deep vein thrombophlebitis, a popliteal cyst, popliteal varices or artery aneurysm, ganglia, neural tumours, sarcoma, and haemangioma. When the swelling is associated with tenderness, diagnostic considerations should include tear of medial head of gastrocnemius or plantaris muscles, cellulitis, fasciitis, com...