Intra- and inter-operator reproducibility of US point shear-wave elastography in various organs: evaluation in phantoms and healthy volunteers

摘要

Purpose This study was conducted in order to assess the intra- and interoperator reproducibility of shear-wave speed (SWS) measurement on elasticity phantoms and healthy volunteers using ultrasound-based point shear-wave elastography. Materials and methods This study was approved by the institutional review board. Two operators measured the SWS of five elasticity phantoms and seven organs (thyroid, lymph node, muscle, spleen, kidney, pancreas, and liver) of 30 healthy volunteers with 1.0-4.5 MHz convex (4C1) and 4.0-9.0 MHz linear (9L4) transducers. The phantom measurements were repeated ten times, while the volunteer measurements were performed five times each. Intra- and interoperator reproducibility was assessed. Interoperator reproducibility was also evaluated with the 95% Bland-Altman limits of agreement (LOA). Results In phantoms, all intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) were above 0.90 and the 95% LOA between the two operators were less than +/- 18%. In volunteers, intraoperator ICCs were > 0.75 for all regions except the pancreas. Interoperator ICC was above 0.75 for the right lobe of the liver (depth 4 cm) and the kidney, but the 95% LOA was less than +/- 25% only for the liver. Conclusion Although excellent in phantoms, interoperator reproducibility was insufficient for all regions in the volunteers other than the right hepatic lobe at a depth of 4 cm. Clinicians should be aware of the 95% LOA when using SWS in patients.