The role of real-time elastosonography in the diagnosis of quadriceps fat pad edema.

BACKGROUND: Quadriceps fat pad edema (QFPE) is one of the causes of anterior knee pain. Real-time elastosonography (RTE) has been increasingly used in musculoskeletal disorders.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the role of RTE in the diagnosis of QFPE.

MATERIAL AND METHODS: A total of 23 patients with QFPE on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) (study group) were prospectively compared with 29 patients with normal MRI findings (control group) using RTE. On MRI, the thickness of the quadriceps fat pad (QFP), and on RTE, strain ratio (SR) of QFP were measured and compared between the two groups.

RESULTS: The study group contained 23 patients (12 men, 11 women; mean age = 41.6 ± 7.0 years) and the control group contained 29 patients (14 men, 15 women; mean age = 42.3 ± 6.1 years). No significant differences were found in terms of mean age and sex between the two groups ( P  = 0.70, P  = 0.78, respectively). The median thicknesses of the QFPs were 8.10 mm and 6.75 mm in the study and control groups, respectively ( P  < 0.001). The median SR values of the study group and control group were found to be 63.20 and 6.24, respectively. The SR values were significantly higher in patients with QFPE ( P  < 0.001).

CONCLUSION: RTE may be an effective imaging method for evaluating QFPE.