Is 2D SWE sufficient as clinical diagnosis in patients with plantar fasciitis?

Background: The use of shear wave elastography (SWE) seems to be an important imaging method in the diagnosis of plantar fasciitis (PF).

Purpose: To compare patients diagnosed with PF with similar and young healthy control groups in terms of B-mode ultrasound (US) and SWE results and to evaluate the elasticity of the plantar fascia.

Material and methods: A total of 140 feet of 70 participants were evaluated, including 30 patients and 40 healthy individuals as the control. Clinical, B-mode US, and SWE evaluations were performed for each patient. In addition, American Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Score (AOFAS) was calculated to evaluate pain and foot function in both groups.

Results: Of the patients in the PF group, 40 (88%) were women and the healthy control groups had similar sex distributions (P = 0.23). The AOFAS score was lower in feet with PF compared to the other groups (P < 0.001). Of 30 patients with PF, 15 (50%) had bilateral PF and 15 (50%) unilateral PF. In addition, ≥4 mm thickness measurement, which was used as a diagnostic criterion for PF as a US finding, could be shown in 11 (73.3%) patients with unilateral PF and 6 (40%) patients with bilateral PF.

Conclusion: In conclusion, the evaluation of the diagnosis of PF with clinical findings and regular follow-up of measurements with SWE can provide measurement results with higher sensitivity in the diagnosis of PF.