Is there a correlation between the severity of Idiopathic Granulomatous Mastitis and pre-treatment Shear-Wave Elastography Findings? Original research.

Aim: The aim of this study was to analyze the correlation between the severity of idiopathic Garulomatous Mastitis (IGM) and the pre-treatment Shear-Wave Elastography (SWE) findings.

Material And Methods: A total of 39 patients diagnosed with granulomatous mastitis were included in the study between the dates of December 2014 and February 2017. The patients were divided into two groups. Group 1 was treated using a conservative protocol and steroids. Group 2 was treated surgically. Pre-treatment SWE findings of both groups were compared.

Results: The mean ages of the patients in group 1 and 2 were 38.44±9.6 and 36.05±7.44 years, respectively. There were not any significant differences between the groups with regard to frequency of BI-RADS categories and Virtual touch tissue imaging (VTI) patterns. The mean Shear-Wave Spead (SWS) were 1.98 ± 1.02 m/sec and 2.82± 1.66 m/sec in group 1 and 2 respectively. The difference was not significant (p ≥ 0.05). The BI-RADS categories and VTI patterns did not show significant difference when the recurrent and non-recurrent patients were compared.

Conclusion: There may not be a correlation with the pre-treatment SWE findings and severity of the IGM.

Key Words: Breast, Elasticity Imaging Techniques, Granulomatous mastitis, Ultrasonography.