Gray scale ultrasound combined with shear wave elastography in evaluation of myofascial trigger points in patients with myofascial pain syndrome / 中国医学影像技术

ABSTRACT

Objective: To explore the application value of gray scale ultrasound combined with shear wave elastography(SWE) in evaluation of myofascial trigger points (MTrPs) in patients with myofascial pain syndrome (MPS). Methods: Totally 28 MPS patients (case group, 36 MTrPs) and 33 healthy volunteers (control group, 33 normal muscle points) were enrolled. In case group, 2 examiners measured the muscle thickness of superior trapezius, shear wave velocity (SWV) and Young's modulus (E), while only one examiner measured the above indexes in control group. One week later, the measurements were repeated in both groups. The consistency between 2 examiners was evaluated by using intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC). Pearson correlation analysis was used to evaluate the correlation of visual analogue scale(VAS) in MPS patients with the muscle thickness of superior trapezius, SWV and E. Results: The consistency of repeated measurement, consistency of time and consistency between 2 examiners were all good or excellent (ICC 0.73-0.98). The muscle thickness of superior trapezius, SWV and E in case group were higher than those in control group (all P<0.05). There was no correlation between VAS and muscle thickness, but positive correlations between VAS and SWV (r=0.709, P<0.001), E (r=0.653, P=0.002). Conclusion: Gray scale ultrasound combined with SWE can be used to assess the morphological features and biomechanical property of MTrPs in patients with MPS.