Data from: Utility of real-time shear wave elastography in the assessment of testicular torsion

Real-time shear-wave elastography (SWE) is a newly developed method which can obtain the stiffness of tissues and organs based on tracking of shear wave propagation through a structure. Several studies have demonstrated its potential in the differentiation between diseased and normal tissue in clinical practices, however the applicability to testicular disease has not been well elucidated. We investigated the feasibility and reproducibility of SWE in the detection of testicular torsion. This prospective study comprised 15 patients with complete testicular torsion. Results obtained from SWE along with conventional gray-scale and color Doppler sonography and post-operative pathology were compared. The results revealed that (i) the size of injured testis was increased and the twisted testis parenchyma was heterogeneous. The blood flow signals in injured testis were barely visible or absent; (ii) The Young’s modulus, including Emean, Emax, Emin and SD values in the border area of torsional testis were higher than those of normal testis (Emean, 78.07±9.01kPa vs 22.0±5.10kPa; Emax,94.07±6.53kPa vs 27.87±5.78kPa; Emin, 60.73±7.84 kPa vs 18.90±4.39kPa; SD, 7.67±0.60 kPa vs 2.30±0.36 kPa, [P<0.05]); The Emax and SD values in the central area of the torsional testis were higher than the corresponding area of the normal testis (Emax, 8.23±0.30 kPa vs 3.97±0.95kPa; SD, 1.5±0.26kPa vs 0.67±0.35kPa,[P<0.05]) and Emin values was lower than those of normal testicles(0.93±0.51kPa vs 1.6±0.36kPa; [P<0.05]); (iii) The Young's modulus measurement between two physicians showed good agreement. The pathological findings were accordance with SWE measurement. SWE is a non-invasive, convenient and high reproducible method and may serve as an important alternative tool in the diagnosis and monitoring the progression of the acute scrotums, in additional to conventional Doppler sonography.

实时剪切波弹性成像（shear-wave elastography, SWE）是一种新兴的成像方法，可通过追踪剪切波在组织结构内的传播，获取组织与器官的硬度信息。多项研究已证实其在临床实践中鉴别病变与正常组织的潜力，但针对睾丸疾病的应用价值尚未得到充分阐明。本研究旨在探讨SWE在检测睾丸扭转中的可行性与可重复性。本前瞻性研究共纳入15例完全性睾丸扭转患者，将SWE检测结果与常规灰阶超声、彩色多普勒超声及术后病理结果进行对比分析。研究结果显示：(i) 受损睾丸体积增大，扭转睾丸实质回声不均；受损睾丸内血流信号几乎不可见或完全缺失；(ii) 扭转睾丸边缘区域的平均杨氏模量（Emean）、最大杨氏模量（Emax）、最小杨氏模量（Emin）及标准差（SD）均高于正常睾丸：Emean分别为78.07±9.01kPa与22.0±5.10kPa；Emax分别为94.07±6.53kPa与27.87±5.78kPa；Emin分别为60.73±7.84kPa与18.90±4.39kPa；SD分别为7.67±0.60kPa与2.30±0.36kPa，组间差异均具有统计学意义（P<0.05）。扭转睾丸中央区域的Emax及SD值亦高于正常睾丸对应区域：分别为8.23±0.30kPa vs 3.97±0.95kPa、1.5±0.26kPa vs 0.67±0.35kPa（P<0.05）；而其Emin值则低于正常睾丸（0.93±0.51kPa vs 1.6±0.36kPa，P<0.05）；(iii) 两名医师间的杨氏模量测量结果具有良好的一致性。病理结果与SWE检测结果相符。SWE是一种无创、便捷且可重复性高的检测方法，除常规多普勒超声外，可作为急性阴囊疾病诊断及病情进展监测的重要替代工具。