Clin Endosc.  2013 Mar;46(2):172-177. 10.5946/ce.2013.46.2.172.

Endoscopic Ultrasound Elastography for the Pancreas in Korea: A Preliminary Single Center Study

• Lee TH
• Cho YD
• Cha SW
• Cho JY
• Jang JY
• Jeong SW
• Choi HJ
• Moon JH

• KMID: 1805300
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5946/ce.2013.46.2.172

Abstract

BACKGROUND/AIMS
Endoscopic ultrasound elastography (EUS-EG) has been widely used for the evaluation of pancreatic cancer in the Western world. To date, there is very little experience with EUS-EG in Korea. We described the results of comparison between normal pancreas and pancreatic cancer in Korea.
METHODS
The present study was performed at a tertiary hospital on 35 subjects comprising 20 with normal pancreas (control group) and 15 with pancreatic cancer (disease group). We compared the EUS-EG performance of the two groups.
RESULTS
The pancreas in the control group showed a mean elasticity value of 0.53% (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.45 to 0.61). The elasticity value was higher than that previously reported from Western country (0.47%; 95% CI, 0.38 to 0.57). In the disease group, the mean elasticity value of pancreatic lesions was 0.02% (95% CI, 0.01 to 0.02). The mean elasticity value of the disease group was significantly lower than that of the control group (p<0.0001).
CONCLUSIONS
EUS-EG could be a highly sensitive diagnostic modality for pancreatic cancer in Korea with little EUS-EG experience. We also provided the reference range of elasticity value of normal pancreas, which might be valuable in the interpretation of pancreatic elasticity data for Korean adults.

Keyword

Elasticity imaging techniques; Endosonography; Pancreas

MeSH Terms

Adult
Elasticity
Elasticity Imaging Techniques
Endosonography
Humans
Korea
Pancreas
Pancreatic Neoplasms
Reference Values
Tertiary Care Centers
Western World

Figure

• 

  Fig. 1 Elasticity measurements of the pancreas in the control group. (A) Normal-appearing pancreas on B-mode. (B) Green color with homogeneous distribution throughout the pancreatic parenchyma. (C) Two areas (A and B) were selected, among the regions of interest, for quantitative analysis.

• 

  Fig. 2 Elasticity measurements of pancreatic lesions in the disease group. (A) Dual views show the elastography mode (left panel) and B-mode (right panel). The area with green/heterogeneous pattern is representative of peripancreatic tissue, while the lesion with blue/heterogeneous pattern is representative of pancreatic cancer. (B) Area A was selected for quantitative analysis among the regions of interest.

• 

  Fig. 3 Comparison of mean elasticity values of the pancreas and pancreatic lesions between the control group and the disease group. The mean elasticity value of the disease group was significantly lower than that of the control group (p<0.001).

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