MRI of Skeletal Muscles in Participants with Type 2 Diabetes with or without Diabetic Polyneuropathy

Background: Diabetic polyneuropathy (DPN) is associated with loss of muscle strength. MRI including diffusion-tensor imaging (DTI) may enable detection of muscle abnormalities related to type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2) and DPN. Purpose: To assess skeletal muscle abnormalities in participants with DM2 with or without DPN by using MRI. Materials and Methods: This prospective cross-sectional study included participants with DM2 and DPN (DPN positive), participants with DM2 without DPN (DPN negative), and healthy control (HC) participants enrolled between August 2017 and June 2018. Muscle strength at the knee and ankle was determined with isokinetic dynamometry. MRI of the lower extremities included the Dixon sequence, multicomponent T2 mapping, and DTI calculated fat fractions (FFs), T2 relaxation of muscle (T2(water)), fractional anisotropy (FA), and diffusivity (mean, axial, and radial). One-way analysis of variance and Tukey honestly significant difference were applied for comparison between groups, and multivariate regression models were used for association between MRI parameters, nerve conduction, strength, and body mass index (BMI). Results: Twenty participants with DPN (mean age, 65 years +/- 9 [standard deviation]; 70% men; mean BMI, 34 kg/m(2) +/- 5), 20 participants without DPN (mean age, 64 years +/- 9; 55% men; mean BMI, 30 kg/m(2) +/- 6), and 20 HC participants (mean age, 61 years +/- 10; 55% men; mean BMI, 27 kg/m(2) +/- 5) were enrolled in this study. Muscle strength adjusted for age, sex, and BMI was lower in participants with DPN than in DPN-negative and HC participants in the upper and lower leg (plantar flexors [PF], 62% vs 78% vs 89%; P < .001; knee extensors [KE], 73% vs 95% vs 93%; P < .001). FF was higher in leg muscle groups of participants with DPN than in DPN-negative and HC participants (PF, 20% vs 10% vs 8%; P < .001; KE, 13% vs 8% vs 6%; P < .001). T2(water) was prolonged in leg muscle groups of participants with DPN when compared with HC participants (PF, 33 msec vs 31 msec; P < .001; KE, 32 msec vs 31 msec; P = .002) and in the lower leg when compared with participants without DPN (PF, 33 msec vs 32 msec; P = .03). In multivariate regression models, strength was associated with FA (b = -0.0004), T2(water) (b = -0.03 msec), and FF (b = -0.1%) at thigh level (P < .001). Furthermore, FA (b = -0.007), T2(water) (b = -0.53 msec), and FF (b = -4.0%) were associated with nerve conduction at calf level (P < .001). Conclusion: MRI of leg muscle groups revealed fat accumulation, differences in water composition, and structural changes in participants with type 2 diabetes mellitus and neuropathy. Abnormalities were most pronounced in the plantar flexors. (C) RSNA, 2020