Investigation of normal kidney stiffness values and influencing factors in healthy individuals using 3T magnetic resonance elastography

This study aimed to establish the normal range of kidney stiffness (KS) in individuals with normal appearing kidneys (INK) using 3 Tesla (T) magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) while also exploring the potential influence of demographic and anatomical parameters on KS. This retrospective study included cases from March 2021 to October 2024, in May 2025, where abdominal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed, capturing both kidneys in the cross-sectional area. Only cases with normal kidney signal characteristics and morphology on conventional MRI sequences were included. All relevant data and radiological images were obtained from the hospital computerized database. The study included patient age, sex, comorbidity status, body mass index (BMI), and specific MRI and MRE parameters, including kidney stiffness (KS in Pascal), cranio-caudal (CC) diameter, anteroposterior (AP) diameter, lateral diameter, and kidney volume. The study included 31 males (51.70%) and 29 females (48.30%), with a mean age of 36.30 ± 9.05 years. No significant correlation was found between the stiffness of the right and left kidneys and age, sex, or BMI. The mean stiffness of the right kidneys was 2360.57 ± 93.62 Pa, while that of the left kidneys was 2360.35 ± 144.13 Pa. No significant correlations were observed between the CC diameter, AP diameter, lateral diameter, kidney volume of either kidney, and stiffness. KS values were similar in both kidneys and showed no correlation with demographic or anatomical factors, indicating their consistency for future studies.