Application of ultrasonic elastography in preoperative T staging of rectal neoplasm

Objective To investigate the clinical application value of ultrasound elastography(UE) in preoperative T staging of rectal neoplasm. Methods One hundred and twenty-eight cases of rectal neoplasm patients were selected, and underwent endorectal ultrasonography(EURS) and UE. The T staging was recorded and compared with pathology. Results There were no significant differences in T staging total accuracy between ERUS and UE (69.53% vs 78.90%, P>0.05). But the diagnosis accuracy of T2 staging of UE was higher than that of ERUS (86.72% vs 75.00%, P=0.017), and the diagnosis accuracy of T3 staging was also higher than that of ERUS (89.06% vs 77.34%, P=0.012). There were no significant differences in overestimated (13.28% vs 9.38%) and underestimated (17.18% vs 11.72%) of T staging between ERUS and UE (P>0.05). Conclusions ERUS has a high diagnosis accuracy in T2 and T3 staging of rectal neoplasm, which may make up for the deficiency of endorectal ultrasonography, and provide a new treatment for clinical strategy. Key words: Elasticity imaging techniques; Endosonography; Rectal neoplasms; Neoplasm staging