BACKGROUND: In the general population pectoralis major tendon ruptures are uncommon; however, it is a common injury in the military population. The military service members have greater physical demands than the general population. The purpose of this study is to critically assess the post-operative outcomes of pectoralis major tendon ruptures in military service members following a repair using intramedullary suture anchors.
OBJECTIVE: To report outcomes of pectoralis major repairs utilizing intramedullary suture anchors in military service members.
METHODS: A retrospective chart review was performed between 2014 to 2022, identifying patients who underwent a pectoralis major rupture repair performed by the senior surgeon using intramedullary suture anchors. Records were reviewed for age, gender, mechanism of injury, chronicity, VAS, and SANE scores. Patients who had less than 1 year of follow-up were excluded from the study. During the study period, 18 patients underwent surgical repair of their torn pectoralis major, and 15 patients were greater than 1-year post-operative. Twelve of these 15 patients (80%) were successfully contacted, and patient reported outcomes were collected.
RESULTS: A total of 12 patients (12 male, 0 female) with a mean age of 34.5 years, were identified. Average time from injury to surgery was 471.4 days. The average duration of follow-up was 3.7 years. There was a decrease in the preoperative average single repetition maximum (1RM) barbell bench press of 277 lbs to a postoperative average 1RM bench press of 225 lbs (p-value=0.03). The average change in average 1RM barbell bench press is a 19.04% decrease postoperatively. Postoperative SANE score was 80.8 and an ASES of 86.9. Seven patients (58.3%) stated that they were afraid to bench press at their previous weight due to fear of reinjury. None of the patients were medically discharged from the military due to limitations from their repaired shoulder. Ten patients (83%) reported that they were extremely satisfied with their shoulder function post-operatively.
CONCLUSIONS: Repair of the pectoralis major tendon ruptures using intramedullary suture anchors has high rates of return to duty, patient satisfaction and patient reported outcomes. Greater than half of the patients reported that they were afraid to bench press at their preinjury weight due to concerns of reinjury; the decrease in post-operative strength may be a result of the patients\' fear of reinjury rather than physiologic limitations.

Lipid oxidation is a normal process in living muscles, but is escalated postmortem due to the loss of inherent antioxidant defense, which causes quality deterioration of meat. This study investigates the effects of essential oil (EO) supplementation to the drinking water of broiler chicken on physical properties, antioxidants, and lipid oxidation in Pectoralis major during frozen storage. Two hundred day-old chicks of arbo acre were allocated to five groups; control (T1) and the groups supplemented with: Allium sativum (T2), Curcuma longa (T3), Zingiber officinale (T4) and Cinnamomum zeylanicum (T5) at the level of 300ml/L into drinking water throughout a 49-d study. Thereafter, birds were slaughtered and breast meat excised for assessments during a 28-d storage period at 4 °C using standard procedure. The results show that cooking loss of Pectoralis major from T1 birds was not significantly (P > 0.05) different from that of T4, and were significantly higher than those of T2, T3, and T5 birds. Meat from T5 birds showed the lowest drip loss. The results for total antioxidant activity are not similar among sampling days. In general, control group showed inferior values, but T2 and T4 had greater values on days 0 and 28. The rate of lipid peroxidation increased with time; however, EOs administration markedly reduced the peroxidation rates compared to controls. The catalase activity of breast meat was significantly declined from day 14, but was enhanced as an effect of EO consumption especially in group T5 at 21 and 28 d. Supplementation of garlic, turmeric, and cinnamon EOs to broiler chickens increased glutathione peroxidase in breast meat on days 21 and 28, while turmeric EO enhanced superoxide dismutase up to 7 d. In conclusion, EOs are valuable supplements for broiler chickens and potent in enhancing meat quality and prolonging the shelf life.

UNASSIGNED: Addressing irreparable subscapularis in conjunction with reverse total shoulder arthroplasty (RTSA) presents challenges. RTSA without subscapularis repair leads to similar clinical results compared to those with a subscapularis repair but with less range of motion in internal rotation (IR). Optimization of IR and anterior stability after RTSA, in the setting of an irreparable subscapularis may be achieved with a pectoralis major (PM) tendon transfer. This study aims to describe a novel surgical technique involving PM transfer in RTSA for irreparable subscapularis and report the initial clinical and radiological outcomes.
UNASSIGNED: This study included 13 patients with an average of 65.5 years (range, 52-82 years). All patients underwent a lateralized RTSA with concurrent PM transfer, associated to an irreparable subscapularis, performed by a single surgeon (PV). Preoperative and postoperative range of motion, including internal rotation 1, internal rotation 2, external rotation 1 (ER1) and forward elevation, were measured. The absolute Constant score, the age and sex-adjusted Constant Murley score, Visual Analog Scale and subjective shoulder value were evaluated by the same surgeon. Standard X-rays, preoperative magnetic resonance imaging, and computed tomography scan were performed for all patients.
UNASSIGNED: With an average follow-up of 37 months, the mean Constant score improved from 17.7 preoperatively to 61 postoperative (P < .05). Postoperative clinical outcomes significantly improved across the study group. Mean internal rotation 2 increased from 44.6° to 61.5° (P < .05), while internal rotation 1 improved from 2.6 to 5 (P < .05). The Gerber test yielded positive results for all patients, while the belly press test was negative for eleven patients. Postoperative imaging assessment of the transferred PM tendon transfer showed intact repair, a good cicatrization on the lesser tuberosity with excellent trophicity of the muscle without any fatty infiltration in all patients.
UNASSIGNED: PM transfer combined with a lateralized RSTA in cases of irreparable subscapularis leads to improved shoulder range of motion, particularly in IR, increased strength and pain relief.

White striping (WS) is a myopathy of growing concern to the turkey industry. It is rising in prevalence and has negative consequences for consumer acceptance and the functional properties of turkey meat. The objective of this study was to conduct a genome-wide association study (GWAS) and functional analysis on WS severity. Phenotypic data consisted of white striping scored on turkey breast fillets (N = 8422) by trained observers on a 0-3 scale (none to severe). Of the phenotyped birds, 4667 genotypic records were available using a proprietary 65 K single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) chip. The SNP effects were estimated using a linear mixed model with a 30-SNP sliding window approach used to express the percentage genetic variance explained. Positional candidate genes were those located within 50 kb of the top 1% of SNP windows explaining the most genetic variance. Of the 95 positional candidate genes, seven were further classified as functional candidate genes because of their association with both a significant gene ontology and molecular function term. The results of the GWAS emphasize the polygenic nature of the trait with no specific genomic region contributing a large portion to the overall genetic variance. Significant pathways relating to growth, muscle development, collagen formation, circulatory system development, cell response to stimulus, and cytokine production were identified. These results help to support published biological associations between WS and hypoxia and oxidative stress and provide information that may be useful for future-omics studies in understanding the biological associations with WS development in turkeys.

This study addresses a limitation of prior research on pectoralis major (PMaj) thickness changes during the pectoralis fly exercise using a wearable ultrasound imaging setup. Although previous studies used manual measurement and subjective evaluation, it is important to acknowledge the subsequent limitations of automating widespread applications. We then employed a deep learning model for image segmentation and automated measurement to solve the problem and study the additional quantitative supplementary information that could be provided. Our results revealed increased PMaj thickness changes in the coronal plane within the probe detection region when real-time ultrasound imaging (RUSI) visual biofeedback was incorporated, regardless of load intensity (50% or 80% of one-repetition maximum). Additionally, participants showed uniform thickness changes in the PMaj in response to enhanced RUSI biofeedback. Notably, the differences in PMaj thickness changes between load intensities were reduced by RUSI biofeedback, suggesting altered muscle activation strategies. We identified the optimal measurement location for the maximal PMaj thickness close to the rib end and emphasized the lightweight applicability of our model for fitness training and muscle assessment. Further studies can refine load intensities, investigate diverse parameters, and employ different network models to enhance accuracy. This study contributes to our understanding of the effects of muscle physiology and exercise training.

Isolated myocysticercosis is a neglected tropical disease and a rare diagnosis, with only a handful of cases being reported in the literature. It is highlighted that recently, it has not only been limited to endemic regions but also persists globally due to widespread migration from endemic regions. We present a case of isolated myocysticercosis of the right pectoralis major without neurological involvement in a non-pork-eater. High-resolution ultrasonography is an effective method of diagnosis. Anti-helmintic drugs are effective treatment options; if not responding, surgical excision is the management of choice. Ultrasound-guided excision is a better treatment modality to prevent complications.

BACKGROUND: This study examined the association between chest muscles and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and the relationship between chest muscle areas and acute exacerbations of COPD (AECOPD).
METHODS: There were 168 subjects in the non-COPD group and 101 patients in the COPD group. The respiratory and accessory respiratory muscle areas were obtained using 3D Slicer software to analysis the imaging of  computed tomography (CT). Univariate and multivariate Poisson regressions were used to analyze the number of AECOPD cases during the preceding year. The cutoff value was obtained using a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve.
RESULTS: We scanned 6342 subjects records, 269 of which were included in this study. We then measured the following muscle areas (non-COPD group vs. COPD group): pectoralis major (19.06 ± 5.36 cm2 vs. 13.25 ± 3.71 cm2, P < 0.001), pectoralis minor (6.81 ± 2.03 cm2 vs. 5.95 ± 1.81 cm2, P = 0.001), diaphragmatic dome (1.39 ± 0.97 cm2 vs. 0.85 ± 0.72 cm2, P = 0.011), musculus serratus anterior (28.03 ± 14.95 cm2 vs.16.76 ± 12.69 cm2, P < 0.001), intercostal muscle (12.36 ± 6.64 cm2 vs. 7.15 ± 5.6 cm2, P < 0.001), pectoralis subcutaneous fat (25.91 ± 13.23 cm2 vs. 18.79 ± 10.81 cm2, P < 0.001), paravertebral muscle (14.8 ± 4.35 cm2 vs. 13.33 ± 4.27 cm2, P = 0.007), and paravertebral subcutaneous fat (12.57 ± 5.09 cm2 vs. 10.14 ± 6.94 cm2, P = 0.001). The areas under the ROC curve for the pectoralis major, intercostal, and the musculus serratus anterior muscle areas were 81.56%, 73.28%, and 71.56%, respectively. Pectoralis major area was negatively associated with the number of AECOPD during the preceding year after adjustment (relative risk, 0.936; 95% confidence interval, 0.879-0.996; P = 0.037).
CONCLUSIONS: The pectoralis major muscle area was negative associated with COPD. Moreover, there was a negative correlation between the number of AECOPD during the preceding year and the pectoralis major area.

Accurately diagnosing pectoralis major injuries, particularly in athletes, often presents a challenge for healthcare practitioners. Although pectoralis muscle injuries are relatively uncommon, the diagnosis of a tear may be overlooked without careful screening by a thorough physical examination of both the injured and uninjured sides. While magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has traditionally held the gold standard, musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSKUS) has emerged as a viable alternative. This article delves into the power of MSKUS in evaluating and diagnosing pectoralis major injuries, highlighting its dynamic capabilities, real-time visualization, and cost-effectiveness in comparison to MRI. By equipping healthcare professionals with a thorough understanding of MSKUS\'s potential, this article aims to empower them to confidently diagnose and manage pectoralis major injuries, ultimately improving patient outcomes and facilitating a faster return to function.

UNASSIGNED: Pectoralis major muscle/myocutaneous flaps (PMMFs) are commonly used in reconstructive surgery, but may result in shoulder disability on the donor side. A systematic review evaluating this morbidity could be beneficial for guiding patients and providers considering this procedure.
UNASSIGNED: In October 2022, a systematic review of studies evaluating quantitative/qualitative measures of functional morbidity after PMMF was conducted. The results were categorized into PMMF\'s effect on range of motion (ROM), strength, and ability to complete shoulder-related activities/quality of life.
UNASSIGNED: Eleven studies were included for analysis, which analyzed standard PMMF and two PMMF variants that spared portions of the muscle. Three of five studies demonstrated reduced shoulder ROM for standard PMMF versus controls lasting at least 4 months after head and neck reconstruction. Two of five studies, including two prospective studies demonstrated reduced shoulder strength for standard PMMF versus controls lasting at least 3 months after surgery. Five of nine studies found significant impairment in the ability to conduct shoulder-related activities, including work, up to one year postoperatively for standard PMMF versus controls. Muscle-sparing PMMF variants exhibited more promising outcomes in some categories.
UNASSIGNED: Standard PMMF results in prolonged reductions in shoulder ROM and strength, which may impair patients in shoulder-related activities. Other reconstructive options should be considered in patients who frequently participate in such activities. For patients requiring PMMF, muscle-sparing PMMF variants should be considered as alternatives to the standard PMMF.

UNASSIGNED: Forward shoulder posture (FSP) is a risk factor for shoulder pathology. Manual therapists often use myofascial release (MFR) to elongate restricted pectoral fascia to reduce FSP and improve shoulder function; however, the effects of this treatment approach remain anecdotal.
UNASSIGNED: Determine the acute effects of 4-min of MFR, compared to a soft-touch control (CON), to the pectoral fascia on: 1) FSP, 2) shoulder horizontal abduction ROM (HA-ROM), and 3) muscle excitation of the trapezius (upper, middle, lower [UT, MT, LT]) and pectoralis major (PEC).
UNASSIGNED: Fifty-nine right-handed participants (27 ± 9 years, 30 female) with FSP, but otherwise asymptomatic shoulders participated in a randomized crossover clinical trial by attending two experimental sessions: one MFR and one CON treatment, each administered by a Registered Massage Therapist. FSP, HA-ROM, and muscle excitation during a reaching task, were measured before and after each treatment.
UNASSIGNED: There was a significant interaction between treatment and time for FSP (p = .018, ηp = .093) with FSP decreasing from PRE MFR (128 ± 19 mm) to POST MFR (123 ± 19 mm; p < .001, ηp = .420) and PRE CON (126 ± 19 mm) to POST CON (124 ± 18 mm; p < .001, ηp = .191) interventions. There were no significant differences in HA-ROM or muscle excitation.
UNASSIGNED: Four minutes of MFR or CON to the pectoral fascia acutely reduces FSP.