The study aimed to evaluate masseter muscle stiffness in adult healthy volunteers referred to a massage treatment and also to investigate whether shear-wave elastography can be used to monitor the effect of massage on the masseter muscle. The study included 21 healthy volunteers, who were subjected to a 30-minute massage of the masseter muscle. Muscle stiffness was measured by shear-wave elastography before and directly after the massage. Pain during the massage was assessed using the visual analogue scale (VAS). The data of 20 patients (one excluded due to severe pain) with a median age of 34.5 years were analysed. The stiffness values were 11.46 ± 1.55 kPa before and 8.97 ± 0.96 kPa after the massage (). The mean drop was 2.49 ± 1.09 kPa. The greatest decrease was observed in people with higher elasticity values before the massage (r = 0.79; ). The median intensity of pain was 7.2 (range: 6–9.5). We concluded that shear-wave elastography is a sensitive tool to monitor changes in the stiffness of the masseter muscle.

中文翻译：

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剪切波弹性成像技术在临床评估和监测咬肌肌硬度变化中的潜力

该研究旨在评估指称按摩治疗的成人健康志愿者的咬肌肌肉僵硬程度，并研究剪切波弹性成像是否可用于监测按摩对咬肌的影响。该研究包括21名健康志愿者，他们接受了30分钟的咬肌按摩。在按摩之前和之后，通过剪切波弹性成像法测量肌肉刚度。使用视觉模拟量表（VAS）评估按摩过程中的疼痛。分析了20例患者的数据（其中1例因严重疼痛而被排除），中位年龄为34.5岁。按摩前的刚度值为11.46±1.55 kPa，按摩后为8.97±0.96 kPa（）。平均下降为2.49±1.09 kPa。在按摩前具有较高弹性值的人群中观察到最大的下降（ r  = 0.79；）。中位疼痛强度为7.2（范围：6-9.5）。我们得出的结论是，剪切波弹性成像是监测咬肌硬度变化的灵敏工具。