Table 2.
Ultrasound and shear wave elastography characteristics of benign and malignant lesions.
| Characteristic | Overall | Malignant | Benign | P-value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patients | 277 | 62 | 215 | |
| (22%) | (78%) | |||
| Mean age (year) | 45.1 ± 14.6 | 59.7 ± 12.8 | 40.9 ± 12.2 | <0.001* |
| Lesions | ||||
| Diameter (mm) | 15.6 ± 8.5 | 20.5 ± 9.5 | 14.2 ± 7.7 | <0.001* |
| Shape | <0.001* | |||
| Oval/Round | 158 | 12 | 146 | |
| (57.0%) | (19.4%) | (67.9%) | ||
| Irregular | 119 | 50 | 69 | |
| (43.0%) | (80.6%) | (32.1%) | ||
| Lesion depth | <0.001* | |||
| >15mm | 90 | 39 | 51 | |
| (32.5%) | (62.9%) | (23.7%) | ||
| <15mm | 187 | 23 | 164 | |
| (67.5%) | (37.1%) | (76.3%) | ||
| Orientation | <0.001* | |||
| Parallel | 222 | 38 | 184 | |
| (80.1%) | (61.3%) | (85.6%) | ||
| Not parallel | 55 | 24 | 31 | |
| (19.9%) | (38.7%) | (14.4%) | ||
| Margin | <0.001* | |||
| Circumscribed | 161 | 14 | 147 | |
| (58.1%) | (22.6%) | (68.4%) | ||
| Non-circumscribed | 116 | 48 | 68 | |
| (41.9%) | (77.4%) | (31.6%) | ||
| Posterior features | <0.001* | |||
| Changed | 44 | 19 | 25 | |
| (15.9%) | (30.6%) | (11.6%) | ||
| Unchanged | 233 | 43 | 190 | |
| (84.1%) | (69.4%) | (88.4%) | ||
| Calcifications | <0.001* | |||
| Present | 34 | 16 | 18 | |
| (12.3%) | (25.8%) | (8.4%) | ||
| Absent | 243 | 46 | 197 | |
| (87.7%) | (74.2%) | (91.6%) | ||
| Vascularity | <0.001* | |||
| Present | 71 | 38 | 33 | |
| (25.6%) | (61.3%) | (15.3%) | ||
| Absent | 206 | 24 | 182 | |
| (74.4%) | (38.7%) | (84.7%) | ||
| Echo pattern | 0.314 | |||
| Hypoechoic | 251 | 55 | 196 | |
| (90.6%) | (88.7%) | (91.2%) | ||
| Isoechoic | 11 | 2 | 9 | |
| (3.9%) | (3.2%) | (4.2%) | ||
| Complex cystic | 3 | 0 | 3 | |
| (1.1%) | 0 | (1.4%) | ||
| Heterogeneous | 12 | 5 | 7 | |
| (4.4%) | (8.1%) | (3.2%) | ||
| SWSSD (m/s) | 0.74 ± 0.73 | 1.74 ± 0.81 | 0.45 ± 0.36 | <0.001* |
| E-mean (kPa) | 31.2 ± 26.9 | 62.2 ± 32.3 | 22.2 ± 16.9 | <0.001* |
| ESD (kPa) | 14.9 ± 16.1 | 36.9 ± 16.8 | 8.5 ± 8.3 | <0.001* |
| SWS-mean (m/s) | 2.91 ± 1.29 | 4.28 ± 1.51 | 2.51 ± 0.88 | <0.001* |
*Indicates a significant difference.
Data are shown as means ± standard deviations; SWSSD = standard deviation of shear wave speed; E-mean = the mean elasticity; ESD = standard deviation of elasticity; SWS-mean = the mean shear wave speed; Changed posterior features include enhancement, shadowing and combined pattern.