Reliability of in vivo human Achilles tendon stiffness assessed using acoustoelastography

Abstract

Introduction: Current ultrasound-based sonoelastography methods, such as shear-wave elastography, are constrained to assessing tissue properties under minimal deformation (∼1%). Human tendons, such as the Achilles tendon, undergo relative large deformation (∼8%) during physiological loading, such as with running and jumping. A new post-processing method, acoustoelastography (AE), uses a tissue's acoustic properties to estimate stiffness under forces resulting in large nonlinear deformation. AE may be particularly well-suited for estimating in vivo tendon biomechanics in humans due to its comparative ease of use (requires only ultrasound) and potential for examining tendon mechanical behavior under high-load conditions.