Diagnostic accuracy of multiparametric ultrasound in the diagnosis of prostate cancer: systematic review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVES: Ultrasound (US) technology has recently made advances that have led to the development of modalities including elastography and contrast-enhanced ultrasound. The use of different US modalities in combination may increase the accuracy of PCa diagnosis. This study aims to assess the diagnostic accuracy of multiparametric ultrasound (mpUS) in the PCa diagnosis. METHODS: Through September 2023, we searched through Cochrane CENTRAL, PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, ClinicalTrial.gov, and Google Scholar for relevant studies. We used standard methods recommended for meta-analyses of diagnostic evaluation. We plot the SROC curve, which stands for summary receiver operating characteristic. To determine how confounding factors affected the results, meta-regression analysis was used. RESULTS: Finally, 1004 patients from 8 studies that were included in this research were examined. The diagnostic odds ratio for PCa was 20 (95% confidence interval (CI), 8–49) and the pooled estimates of mpUS for diagnosis were as follows: sensitivity, 0.88 (95% CI, 0.81–0.93); specificity, 0.72 (95% CI, 0.59–0.83); positive predictive value, 0.75 (95% CI, 0.63–0.87); and negative predictive value, 0.82 (95% CI, 0.71–0.93). The area under the SROC curve was 0.89 (95% CI, 0.86–0.92). There was a significant heterogeneity among the studies (p < 0.01). According to meta-regression, both the sensitivity and specificity of mpUS in the diagnosis of clinically significant PCa (csPCa) were inferior to any PCa. CONCLUSION: The diagnostic accuracy of mpUS in the diagnosis of PCa is moderate, but the accuracy in the diagnosis of csPCa is significantly lower than any PCa. More relevant research is needed in the future. CRITICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT: This study provides urologists and sonographers with useful data by summarizing the accuracy of multiparametric ultrasound in the detection of prostate cancer. KEY POINTS: • Recent studies focused on the role of multiparametric ultrasound in the diagnosis of prostate cancer. • This meta-analysis revealed that multiparametric ultrasound has moderate diagnostic accuracy for prostate cancer. • The diagnostic accuracy of multiparametric ultrasound in the diagnosis of clinically significant prostate cancer is significantly lower than any prostate cancer. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT: [Image: see text] SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13244-023-01543-1.