Elastic guided waves are of interest for inspecting structures due to their ability to propagate over long distances. However, waveguides are often embedded in a large solid domain, considered as unbounded. The waves can attenuate strongly along the guide axis due to the energy leakage into the surrounding medium, which reduces the propagating distance. Searching modes with low attenuation becomes necessary. The goal of this work is to propose a numerical approach to compute modes in embedded elastic waveguides (straight and helical structures), combining the so-called semi-analytical finite element method (SAFE) and a perfectly matched layer (PML) method. The application of this work is the non destructive evaluation of multi-wire strands, which constitute cables in civil structures.