Using ultrasound elastography to monitor human soft tissue behaviour during prolonged loading: A clinical explorative study

Continuous loading of skin and underlying subcutaneous soft tissues leads to dynamic changes of tissue stiffness which are considered to play key roles in pressure ulcer development. Superficial skin and deep tissues seem to react differently. Elastography is able to quantify the dynamic of skin and subcutaneous soft tissue stiffness changes non-invasively in vivo. Shear wave velocity might serve as a new parameter for quantifying pressure ulcer damage risk in superficial and deeper tissues prone to pressure ulcer development.