Role of Shear Wave Elastography in the Diagnosis of Peyronie Disease

Abstract

ObjectivesThe present study aims to explore the role of shear wave elastography (SWE) in the diagnosis of Peyronie disease (PD).MethodsA total of 59 PD patients and 59 age‐matched healthy adult men were included in this study. The B‐mode ultrasound (US) and SWE were performed for all subjects, and the Young modulus (YM) values of the corresponding regions of the penis in the PD and control groups were recorded and compared.ResultsThe mean age of the included PD patients and age‐matched controls was 53.81 years (SD 9.52, range 32–73). On B‐mode US evaluation, 41 (69.5%) of 59 included PD patients were found to have penile plaques, and the remaining 18 (30.5%) patients had no evidence of penile plaque. After evaluation using SWE, the YM values in the penile plaque region of these 41 patients with penile dysplasia were found to be significantly higher (60.29 kPa ± 19.95) than those outside the plaque (in the same patient) (21.05 kPa ± 4.58) and in the same penile region of the control group (20.59 kPa ± 4.65) (P < .001). In the remaining 18 PD patients, the results showed that the YM value of the abnormal penile region in the PD patients (56.67 kPa ± 13.52) was significantly higher than the YM value outside the abnormal penile region in the same patients (22.79 kPa ± 4.31) and in the same penile region in the control group (19.87 kPa ± 3.48) (P < .001; P < .001).ConclusionsIn conclusion, this study showed that SWE as a non‐invasive technique is useful in identifying and differentiating penile plaques in PD patients and is a simple, rapid and complementary method to B‐mode US.

Ultrasound Elastography as a Diagnostic Tool for Peyronie’s Disease: A State-of-the-Art Review

“…Regarding the clinical use of shear-wave elastography (SWE) in patients with PD, we found five articles in the literature where this method was used. The authors of these articles have indicated that this technique is very useful for identifying non-palpable or nondetectable plaques with simple ultrasound equipment, as well as for monitoring changes in plaque rigidity during and after conservative treatments [ 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 ].…”

“…The authors performed a study on 59 patients affected by PD to explore the diagnostic potential of shear-wave elastography (SWE) in diagnosing this condition [ 45 ].…”

“…There was a si correlation between SWE and kPa values and curvature severity, duration from d to curvature onset, and pain level reported by patients, allowing for differ between the patients with PD and the control group. 2024) [45] The authors performed a study on 59 patients affected by PD to explore the diagnostic potential of shear-wave elastography (SWE) in diagnosing this condition [45].…”

“…Elastography is mainly used for soft tissue pathologies, such as tissues of the liver, breast, prostate, thyroid, pancreas, nerves, tendons, and muscles. More recently, elastography has also been proposed for the study of PD [ 37 , 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 ]. Commercial elastography equipment was initially introduced in 2003 and has seen significant advancements over the past two decades.…”