Elastography

Elastography is a medical imaging modality that maps the elastic properties and stiffness of soft tissue. This technique can be used in various medical applications, including the detection of cancerous tumors, which are often harder than the surrounding healthy tissue.

Overview

Elastography is a type of medical imaging that measures the elasticity of biological tissue to diagnose cancer or liver diseases. It is a non-invasive method that can detect hard masses like tumors in the body, which are often stiffer than normal tissue. Elastography can be performed using Ultrasound or Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).

Types of Elastography

There are several types of elastography, including:

• Strain Elastography: This method applies a small compression to the tissue and measures the resulting strain pattern. It is often used in breast cancer detection.
• Shear Wave Elastography: This technique uses an acoustic radiation force to generate shear waves, which propagate perpendicular to the ultrasound beam. The speed of these waves is directly related to the stiffness of the tissue.
• Magnetic Resonance Elastography (MRE): This is a non-invasive imaging technique that measures the stiffness of tissues. It is often used to diagnose liver diseases.

Applications

Elastography has a wide range of applications in medical diagnostics, including:

• Cancer Detection: Elastography can detect tumors in tissues such as the breast or prostate, as these tumors are often stiffer than the surrounding healthy tissue.
• Liver Disease Diagnosis: Elastography can measure liver stiffness, which can indicate liver diseases such as cirrhosis or fibrosis.
• Thyroid Nodules: Elastography can be used to differentiate between benign and malignant thyroid nodules.

Limitations

While elastography is a powerful tool, it also has some limitations. These include operator dependency, difficulty in interpreting results, and inability to reach deep tissues.

See Also

• Medical Imaging
• Ultrasound
• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)
• Cancer
• Liver Disease

Elastography Resources
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