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Diagnostics
Volume 15
Issue 19
10.3390/diagnostics15192495
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This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Review

Echoes of Muscle Aging: The Emerging Role of Shear Wave Elastography in Sarcopenia Diagnosis

by
Linda Galasso
,
Federica Vitale
,
Manuela Pietramale
,
Giorgio Esposto
,
Raffaele Borriello
,
Irene Mignini
,
Antonio Gasbarrini
,
Maria Elena Ainora
and
Maria Assunta Zocco
*
CEMAD Digestive Disease Center, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli IRCCS, Catholic University of Rome, 00168 Rome, Italy
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Diagnostics 2025, 15(19), 2495; https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15192495
Submission received: 14 August 2025 / Revised: 25 September 2025 / Accepted: 29 September 2025 / Published: 30 September 2025
(This article belongs to the Section Medical Imaging and Theranostics)
Versions Notes

Abstract

Sarcopenia, a progressive age-related loss of skeletal muscle mass, strength, and function, is a major contributor to disability, reduced quality of life, and mortality in older adults. While current diagnostic approaches, such as dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and computed tomography (CT), are widely used to assess muscle mass, they have limitations in detecting early qualitative changes in muscle architecture and composition. Shear Wave Elastography (SWE), an ultrasound-based technique that quantifies tissue stiffness, has emerged as a promising tool to evaluate both muscle quantity and quality in a non-invasive, portable, and reproducible manner. Studies suggest that SWE can detect alterations in muscle mechanical properties associated with sarcopenia, providing complementary information to traditional morphometric assessments. Preliminary evidence indicates its good reproducibility, feasibility in various clinical settings, and potential for integration into routine evaluations. This narrative review summarizes current evidence on the use of SWE for the assessment of sarcopenia across diverse populations.
Keywords: shear wave elastography (SWE); sarcopenia shear wave elastography (SWE); sarcopenia

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MDPI and ACS Style

Galasso, L.; Vitale, F.; Pietramale, M.; Esposto, G.; Borriello, R.; Mignini, I.; Gasbarrini, A.; Ainora, M.E.; Zocco, M.A. Echoes of Muscle Aging: The Emerging Role of Shear Wave Elastography in Sarcopenia Diagnosis. Diagnostics 2025, 15, 2495. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15192495

AMA Style

Galasso L, Vitale F, Pietramale M, Esposto G, Borriello R, Mignini I, Gasbarrini A, Ainora ME, Zocco MA. Echoes of Muscle Aging: The Emerging Role of Shear Wave Elastography in Sarcopenia Diagnosis. Diagnostics. 2025; 15(19):2495. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15192495

Chicago/Turabian Style

Galasso, Linda, Federica Vitale, Manuela Pietramale, Giorgio Esposto, Raffaele Borriello, Irene Mignini, Antonio Gasbarrini, Maria Elena Ainora, and Maria Assunta Zocco. 2025. "Echoes of Muscle Aging: The Emerging Role of Shear Wave Elastography in Sarcopenia Diagnosis" Diagnostics 15, no. 19: 2495. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15192495

APA Style

Galasso, L., Vitale, F., Pietramale, M., Esposto, G., Borriello, R., Mignini, I., Gasbarrini, A., Ainora, M. E., & Zocco, M. A. (2025). Echoes of Muscle Aging: The Emerging Role of Shear Wave Elastography in Sarcopenia Diagnosis. Diagnostics, 15(19), 2495. https://doi.org/10.3390/diagnostics15192495

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