Value of real-time shear wave elastography in evaluating classification of liver fibrosis: a Meta-analysis

Objective To investigate the diagnostic value of real-time shear wave elastography ( SWE) technique in evaluating classification of liver fibrosis. Methods Pub Med, CNKI, CBM, VIP, and Wanfang Data were searched for Chinese and English articles on SWE for evaluating classification of liver fibrosis published from January 2010 to December 2016, and these articles were screened and evaluated.Meta-disc 1. 4 software was used for the meta-analysis of the data in the articles included. Results A total of 11 English articles were included, with 1560 cases in total. In the ≥F2 group, SWE had a pooled sensitivity of 0. 85 ( 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0. 82-0. 87) , a specificity of 0. 79 ( 95% CI: 0. 76-0. 82) , and a diagnostic odds ratio ( DOR) of 30. 81 ( 95% CI: 16. 55-57. 34) . In the ≥F3 group, SWE had a pooled sensitivity of 0. 87 ( 95% CI: 0. 84-0. 91) , a specificity of 0. 84 ( 95% CI: 0. 82-0. 87) , and a DOR of 41. 45 ( 95%CI: 18. 25-94. 45) . In the F4 group, SWE had a pooled sensitivity of 0. 88 ( 95% CI: 0. 83-0. 91) , a specificity of 0. 91 ( 95% CI: 0. 89-0. 92) , and a DOR of 67. 18 ( 95% CI: 30. 03-150. 31) . The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve for these three groups were 0. 914 7, 0. 922 3, and 0. 952 0, respectively. Conclusion SWE has a high diagnostic value in evaluating the classification of liver fibrosis and can be used to determine liver fibrosis stage in clinical practice.