Ultrasound Assessment of Ventral Hernia Defects
Condition: Ventral Incisional Hernia
MeSH terms: Hernia; Incisional Hernia; Hernia, Ventral
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      Quantitative radiographic imaging holds promise as a novel and innovative strategy to assess
      ventral hernia patients. Assessing abdominal wall changes surrounding ventral hernia using
      shear wave velocity values measured with ultrasound will identify features of the abdominal
      wall that differ between healthy volunteers and subjects scheduled to have ventral hernia
      repair. Through the use of ultrasound including shear wave velocity measurements, the
      abdominal wall of 25 subjects scheduled to have ventral hernia repair will be compared to
      those of 35 healthy volunteers. The ultrasound measurements will elucidate if ventral hernia
      affects abdominal wall elasticity and effect surgical outcomes.
    

Detailed description: 
      ARFI-SWV Ultrasound holds promise as an inexpensive, noninvasive, point-of-care diagnostic
      tool for pre-operatively predicting successful hernia repair. The investigators propose to
      develop and refine a quantitative ultrasound protocol to measure abdominal wall features
      suitable for predicting successful closure of the midline fascia. ARFI-SWV ultrasound
      represents a novel and intriguing modality for real time visualization and characterization
      of changes in the biomechanical properties of diseased musculoskeletal tissues.

      In this study, ARFI-SWV ultrasound is hypothesized to preoperatively measure the stiffness in
      the lateral abdominal wall as an estimation for mobility during hernia repair. Preoperatively
      evaluating hernia severity through ARFI-SWV ultrasound will be performed to identify
      mechanical characteristics of the abdominal musculature to predict success of midline fascial
      re-approximation in hernia patients. The study proposes to compare ultrasound images and
      associated shear wave velocity measurements between 35 healthy volunteers and 25 subjects
      undergoing surgical repair for ventral hernia. Subjects with ventral hernia will undergo
      imaging no earlier than two weeks prior to elective hernia repair and again postoperatively
      within six months following repair at a standard followup visit. Statistical analysis will
      determine if there is a significant difference in the abdominal wall stiffness, represented
      by the ultrasound shear wave velocity measurements, between the healthy subjects and the
      subjects with ventral hernia. Further analysis will determine if there is any statistically
      significant relationship between abdominal wall stiffness of subjects with ventral hernia and
      surgical outcomes.
    

Intervention name(s): Ultrasound Acoustic Radiation Forced Impulse Shear Wave Velocity
Intervention type(s): Diagnostic Test
Intervention description(s): Abdominal Ultrasound Acoustic Radiation Forced Impulse Shear Wave Velocity (ARFI-SWV)
Allocation: Non-Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Diagnostic