Zeng Bidan, Chen Fei, Qiu Shaodong, Luo Yanhua, Zhu Zhimin, Chen Rui, Mao Lin
Department of Ultrasound, Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
J Ultrasound Med. 2016 Feb;35(2):253-61. doi: 10.7863/ultra.15.03076. Epub 2015 Dec 17.
The aims of this study were to investigate the value of applying quasistatic ultrasound elastography for examination of scrotal lesions, to investigate the features of normal testes on quasistatic elastography, and to establish whether testicular and epididymal lesions had specific quasistatic elastographic features.
We screened 1073 patients who underwent color Doppler sonographic examinations of the testes and epididymides in our hospital and performed quasistatic elastography to evaluate their sonographic features. Measurement data were expressed as mean ± SD. For intergroup comparisons, we used paired t tests and independent-samples t tests, with P < .05 considered significant.
Quasistatic elastography did not reveal any testicular or epididymal abnormalities in 625 cases. Seven cases showed testicular torsion; 3 cases showed testicular space-occupying lesions (1 case each of a testicular teratoma, testicular seminoma, and testicular endodermal sinus tumor); 176 cases showed epididymal lesions (138 cases of caudal epididymal inflammatory masses, 37 cases of caput epididymal cysts, and 1 case of an epididymal lymphangioma); and 262 cases showed varicocele. The normal testicular elastographic appearance showed a 3-ring structure: red surrounding bands with a blue edge region and a green central area. The stiffness in cases of testicular torsion, testicular space-occupying lesions, and epididymal lesions was increased, whereas caput epididymal cysts of different diameters appeared either as green, blue-green-red, or "scooped out." Elastographic results for patients with varicocele were not different from those for normal testes.
Quasistatic elastography can reflect the relative stiffness of the testis and its surrounding tissues, thus providing a novel, reliable, convenient, and noninvasive method for clinical detection of testicular stiffness and related pathologic changes.
本研究旨在探讨应用准静态超声弹性成像检查阴囊病变的价值，研究正常睾丸在准静态弹性成像上的特征，并确定睾丸和附睾病变是否具有特定的准静态弹性成像特征。
我们筛选了在我院接受睾丸和附睾彩色多普勒超声检查的1073例患者，并进行准静态弹性成像以评估其超声特征。测量数据以均数±标准差表示。组间比较采用配对t检验和独立样本t检验，P<0.05认为差异有统计学意义。
625例患者的准静态弹性成像未显示任何睾丸或附睾异常。7例显示睾丸扭转；3例显示睾丸占位性病变（睾丸畸胎瘤、睾丸精原细胞瘤和睾丸内胚窦瘤各1例）；176例显示附睾病变（附睾尾部炎性肿块138例、附睾头部囊肿37例、附睾淋巴管瘤1例）；262例显示精索静脉曲张。正常睾丸弹性成像表现为三环结构：红色周边带伴蓝色边缘区和绿色中心区。睾丸扭转、睾丸占位性病变和附睾病变的硬度增加，而不同直径的附睾头部囊肿表现为绿色、蓝绿红或“凹陷状”。精索静脉曲张患者的弹性成像结果与正常睾丸无差异。
准静态弹性成像可反映睾丸及其周围组织的相对硬度，从而为临床检测睾丸硬度及相关病理变化提供一种新颖、可靠、便捷且无创的方法。
