Fig 1.
The work flow of this study for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) assessment using point shear wave elastography (SWE) and MRI-proton density fat fraction (MRI-PDFF).
Table 1.
The Baseline Characteristics and Laboratory Values of Participants in Each Group.
Fig 2.
Co-occurrence network of clinical features and ultrasound and MRI examinations in NAFLD.
The central node represents NAFLD, with various clinical parameters, laboratory markers, and imaging findings connected through correlation networks. Nodes are color-coded: green for biochemical markers, blue for demographic and metabolic parameters, and yellow for imaging-based features. The network visualization highlights relationships between clinical and imaging markers, with blue lines indicating positive correlations and red lines representing negative correlations. Stronger connections are indicated by thicker lines.
Fig 3.
Schematic diagram of liver SWE examination.
The SWE velocity (Vs, SWE) is 1.10 m/s, and the transformed SWE elasticity (E) is 3.6 kPa, measured at a depth of 44.2 mm. The region of interest (ROI) is indicated by the square box in the liver parenchyma, avoiding large vessels and bile ducts. This measurement is used for assessing liver stiffness, which is relevant for evaluating liver steatosis in NAFLD.
Fig 4.
MRI images displaying various sequences used for MRI-PDFF measurement of NAFLD.
(A) Fat image, showing the fat distribution in the liver. (B) Water image, highlighting the water content in the liver. (C) R2* map, representing the tissue relaxation rate. (D) In-phase water-fat imaging, where water and fat signals are in phase. (E) Out-of-phase water-fat imaging, showing water and fat signals out of phase. (F) Fat fraction map, quantifying the liver fat content.
Table 2.
The diagnostic performance of conventional ultrasound and SWE.
Fig 5.
Radar plots illustrating the diagnostic performance of conventional ultrasound and SWE in grading NAFLD.
(A) Radar plot represents comparisons of diagnostic performance in G0 vs G1-G3 for conventional ultrasound (yellow) and SWE (blue). (B) Radar plot represents comparisons of diagnostic performance in G0 vs G1-G3 for conventional ultrasound (red) and SWE (green). (B) Radar plot represents comparisons of diagnostic performance in G0 vs G1-G3 for conventional ultrasound (purple) and SWE (blue). Key diagnostic metrics displays area under the curve (AUC), sensitivity (SEN), specificity (SPE), positive predictive value (PPV), and negative predictive value (NPV). Higher values indicate better diagnostic accuracy.