Computed tomography
Computed tomography (CT) has been widely used in the past in order to evaluate the presence and extent of change in the striated muscles in patients with hereditary neuromuscular disorders [2, 22–24]. CT is a fast imaging method that is easy to apply and allows a good and standardised assessment of the aspect and shape of the muscles as well as dystrophic changes (in particular fatty degeneration). CT is also relatively operator-independent and allows the evaluation of deeper muscle groups, and newer CT methods using multi-detector rows provide improved imaging possibilities in terms of spatial resolution and multi-planar reconstructions. However, CT has substantial drawbacks leading to an almost complete replacement of this imaging technique by US and MRI. One of the most relevant disadvantages of CT compared with US and MRI is the relatively high radiation dose, which makes the application obsolete, especially in children. Because of the high radiation dose, whole-body applications in order to describe the pattern of muscle involvement are not desired. Another drawback of CT is the limited soft tissue contrast, which substantially impairs the sensitivity in the detection of inflammatory changes (e.g. oedema) that can precede muscle dystrophy.