Non-invasive Doppler ultrasonography for assessment of the portal hypertension of liver cirrhosis: A prospective study.
- Author:
Kyu Hong KIM
1
;
Moon Young KIM
;
Soon Koo BAIK
;
Dong Hun PARK
;
Dae Wook RHIM
;
Jung Min KIM
;
Ki Tae SUK
;
Jae Woo KIM
;
Sang Ok KWON
Author Information
1. Department of Internal Medicine, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Korea. baiksk@yonsei.ac.kr
- Publication Type:Original Article
- Keywords:
Doppler ultrasonography;
Hepatic venous pressure gradient;
Portal hypertension;
Liver cirrhosis
- MeSH:
Ascites;
Hemorrhage;
Hepatic Encephalopathy;
Hepatic Veins;
Humans;
Hypertension, Portal;
Liver;
Liver Cirrhosis;
Prospective Studies;
Renal Artery;
Ultrasonography, Doppler;
Venous Pressure
- From:Korean Journal of Medicine
2008;74(2):139-145
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:Korean
-
Abstract:
BACKGROUND/AIMS: Portal hypertension occurs as a consequence of liver cirrhosis and is responsible for serious complications such as variceal bleeding, ascites and hepatic encephalopathy. The hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG) is the gold standard for assessment of portal hypertension. However, use of the HVPG is limited by being an invasive test. This prospective study evaluated whether the parameters identified by the non-invasive Doppler ultrasonography reflect the HVPG and could potentially be used for the assessment of the severity of portal hypertension in patients with liver cirrhosis. METHODS: HVPG and Doppler ultrasonographic parameters, including the damping index (DI) of the hepatic vein waveform, the portal venous velocity and flow, the splenic venous velocity and flow, the pulsatility and the resistive index of the hepatic, splenic and renal arteries were measured in 114 patients with liver cirrhosis and compared. RESULTS: The DI of the Doppler hepatic vein waveform was significantly correlated with the grade of the HVPG, i.e. with a higher HVPG, an increase in the DI was observed (p<0.01). The other Doppler parameters did not correlate with the HVPG grade. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study showed that the DI measurements of the hepatic vein waveform by Doppler ultrasonography might provide a noninvasive assessment of the severity of portal hypertension.
