title: Clinical application of Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse Imaging with Virtual Touch IQ in breast ultrasound: diagnostic performance and reproducibility of a new technique.
abstract: Background Virtual Touch IQ (VTIQ) is a novel technique of quantitative sonoelastography that applies acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI). Purpose To evaluate breast ARFI imaging with VTIQ in the clinical setting, with regard to reproducibility and diagnostic performance, and to specify cutoff limits for the differentiation of benign and malignant lesions. Material and Methods This retrospective study included 83 patients with 85 breast lesions (51 benign, 34 malignant) who received ARFI imaging with VTIQ. Two independent ARFI measurements of each lesion were performed and shear wave velocities (SWV) of the lesion and the adjacent tissues were measured. A lesion-to-fat velocity ratio (L/F Ratio) was calculated for each lesion. Diagnostic performance of SWV measurements and L/F Ratios was evaluated with receiver operating curve (ROC) analysis. The intraclass correlation coefficient and Bland-Altman plots were used to evaluate measurement reproducibility. Results All measurements showed equal diagnostic performance, as measured by the area under the ROC curve (0.853 for SWV, 0.882 for the L/F Ratio). At a cutoff value of 3.23 m/s, sensitivity and specificity were 82.4% and 80.4%, respectively. An L/F Ratio cutoff value of 2.23 revealed a sensitivity and specificity of 89.7% and 76.5%. The reproducibility of the SWV measurements was moderate (limits of agreement, 40.3-44.4%) and higher than that of the L/F Ratios (54.5-60.2%). Conclusion ARFI imaging with VTIQ is a novel, moderately reproducible, quantitative elastography technique, which provides useful information for the differentiation of benign and malignant breast lesions in the clinical setting.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Panagiotis
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kapetas
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Katja
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pinker-Domenig
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Ramona
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Woitek
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Clauser
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bernathova
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Claudio
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Spick
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Helbich
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Pascal A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Baltzer
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001940:Breast / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D054459:Elasticity Imaging Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D012372:ROC Curve; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D016217:Ultrasonography, Mammary / Q000379:methods*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Breast; acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) imaging; breast cancer; functional ultrasound; sonoelastography; ultrasound