Many student-athletes are preparing or returning to the field or court for their upcoming season. With the start of both collegiate and professional sports, injuries are inevitable — and when they do happen, getting fast, reliable results can make all the difference.
Researchers at Michigan State University found that wireless ultrasound devices, which are smaller and more portable compared to standard machines, can provide athletic trainers and other medical professionals with similar information. Not only do wireless ultrasounds deliver results faster and at lower cost, but they also enable imaging in field-based settings — like sidelines or dugouts — which is not possible with standard, cart-based machines.
The study, published in the Journal of Sport Rehabilitation, was led by first author Jessica Tolzman, a doctoral student, and senior author Matthew Harkey, an assistant professor, both of whom are based in the Department of Kinesiology and conduct research in the Athletic Injury and Rehabilitation Labs within MSU’s College of Education. The research team also included collaborators from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, the University of Virginia and the Nike Sport Research Lab.
“We wanted to see if a more accessible, portable device could deliver the same quality of information as the larger machines we typically use in clinics and labs,” Harkey said. “If it holds up, that opens the door to faster, more flexible ways of assessing muscle health in real-world settings.”
Study background
Ultrasound imaging is a common, noninvasive tool to assess muscle characteristics. These images can be used to measure muscle size (either cross-sectional area or thickness) and muscle quality, which is often based on echo-intensity — a measure of how bright the muscle appears on the image.
The quadriceps are critical for knee stability, and assessing their size and quality is often used to monitor injury recovery and performance. Standard ultrasounds use panoramic imaging to capture the entire muscle, which requires large, expensive machines typically found in hospitals or labs.
Wireless ultrasounds are more affordable and easier to use in diverse locations, but they can only capture a single image at a time. This study set out to determine whether a single image from a wireless device could provide muscle measurements that aligned with those from a panoramic hospital-grade machine.
The study
The research team evaluated 29 female Division I athletes across soccer, volleyball and field hockey. Each athlete had her quadriceps scanned twice — once with a standard ultrasound machine and once with a handheld wireless device.
The standard ultrasound machine measured the entire quadriceps muscle area with panoramic images, while the wireless probe captured muscle thickness and quality from a single image. Researchers then compared the results from both types of devices.
Results and implications
The wireless handheld probes produced results that closely matched those from traditional hospital scanners when it came to measuring muscle size. This means the wireless devices can be a reliable tool for coaches, trainers and clinicians — even though they don’t provide full panoramic views.
Specifically, muscle thickness measured with the wireless probe showed a strong association with muscle size measured by the standard unit. Additionally, there was a moderate association between the two devices in how they measured muscle quality, based on image brightness.
Because of their portability, wireless ultrasounds can be used on the sidelines, in athletic training rooms or during routine workouts — allowing for real-time monitoring without disrupting an athlete’s schedule.
While this study focused on the quadriceps in Division I female athletes, future research is needed to evaluate other muscles and broader populations.
Still, these findings show that wireless ultrasound can offer reliable insight into muscle characteristics — supporting faster, more flexible evaluations in sports and clinical settings.
“This study helps lay the groundwork for using wireless ultrasound more widely in sports medicine. We’re looking forward to seeing how it can support injury recovery and performance monitoring in the future,” Tolzman said.
Funding support included the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases and the Nike Sport Research Lab. A copy of the study is available via the National Library of Medicine.
