Application of virtual touch tissue quantification on the early diagnosis of gouty nephropathy

Abstract

Objective To explore the value of virtual touch tissue quantification(VTQ) on the early diagnosis of gouty nephropathy.Methods 180 healthy controls and 109 gout patients including 57 cases with normal renal function,and 52 cases with gouty nephropathy were measured by VTQ in this study.The shear wave velocity (SWV) of renal cortex,renal medulla and renal sinus were measured using virtual touch tissue quantification(VTQ).The recorded SWV value was compared.Results In all groups,the SWV of renal cortex was the highest with significant difference (P ＜0.01).The SWV of renal cortex in gouty nephropathy group was higher than those in control group (t =0.342,P =0.026).The SWV of renal medulla and sinus in gout with normal renal function group and gouty nephropathy group were higher than those in control group,respectively (gout with normal renal function group:t =-0.311,-0.628; P =0.012,0.000;gouty nephropathy group:t =-0.369,-0.701 ; P =0.000,0.000).The SWV of renal cortex,medulla and sinus had no significant difference between gout patients with normal renal function and gouty nephropathy patients(t =0.117,-0.059,-0.073; P =0.232,0.575,0.523).Conclusions The VTQ technology could quantitatively evaluate tissue elasticity of the gout patients and provide evidence for the early diagnosis of gouty nephropathy. Key words: Ultrasonography; Gouty nephropathy; Virtual touch tissue quantification