Evaluation of the Elasticity of the Pancreas Using Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse Elastography in Patients with Acute Pancreatitis: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) elastography has been used to diagnose acute pancreatitis (AP). The present study aimed to assess the effectiveness of ARFI elastography in the diagnosis of AP. Studies examining the efficacy of ARFI elastography in AP were selected by searching MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL, ICTRP, and ClinicalTrial.gov. until September 2021. Meta-analyses were performed using random effects models. The Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation approach was used to assess the certainty of the evidence. Eight case-control studies (994 patients) were included in the meta-analysis. The ARFI-Virtual Touch Quantification value (or ARFI shear wave propagation velocity) of the AP patient group was 0.83 m/s higher (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.36–1.3) than that in the control group (95% CI: 1.0–1.28). The sensitivity and specificity of ARFI elastography for diagnosing AP were 98.3% (95% CI: 92.6–96.6%) and 95.5% (95% CI: 87.5–98.5%), respectively. The results showed that physicians could use ARFI elastography to accurately diagnose patients with AP. Additional well-designed studies are necessary to validate the efficacy of ARFI elastography in patients with AP.