Tethered spinal cord tension assessed via ultrasound elastography in computational and intraoperative human studies.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Tension in the spinal cord is a trademark of tethered cord syndrome. Unfortunately, existing tests cannot quantify tension across the bulk of the cord, making the diagnostic evaluation of stretch ambiguous. A potential non-destructive metric for spinal cord tension is ultrasound-derived shear wave velocity (SWV). The velocity is sensitive to tissue elasticity and boundary conditions including strain. We use the term Ultrasound Tensography to describe the acoustic evaluation of tension with SWV.

Methods

Our solution Tethered cord Assessment with Ultrasound Tensography (TAUT) was utilized in three sub-studies: finite element simulations, a cadaveric benchtop validation, and a neurosurgical case series. The simulation computed SWV for given tensile forces. The cadave

SUBMITTER: Kerensky MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10770351 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature