OBJECTIVETo study the value of ultrasound elastography in evaluation of ethanol-induced lesions of liver.

METHODSAlcohol with a dose of 2 ml was injected into a fresh porcine liver under ultrasound guidance to create stiff necrosis. Then freehand elastography of the lesion from the identical scan plane was obtained with SONOLINE Antares system using VF10-5 probe at about every 30 seconds till 6 minutes later. The original high quality radiofrequency data were acquired through an ultrasound research interface which was provided by the ultrasound system. Then, corresponding elastograms were produced offline using cross-correlation technique and compared with gross pathology findings.

RESULTSGray-scale sonogram showed a hyperechoic area with acoustic shadow below appeared immediately after alcohol injection. The hyperechoic area tended to be diffuse and its boundary to be illegible with time. On the contrary, the ethanol-induced lesion in elastogram appeared as a low strain hard region surrounded by high strain soft hepatic tissues, with clear but irregular boundaries. Sequential elastograms with the sketched lesion boundaries showed that the lesion area increased in the first 3 minutes after ethanol injection, and then reached a plateau which corresponding to gross specimen.

CONCLUSIONUltrasound elastography is capable of detecting and evaluating the diffusion of ethanol-induced hepatic lesion, and more sensitive and accurate than routine sonography.

Animals ; Elasticity ; Elasticity Imaging Techniques ; instrumentation ; methods ; Ethanol ; pharmacology ; Liver ; diagnostic imaging ; drug effects ; pathology ; Swine ; Ultrasonics

This paper describes a liver elasticity and viscosity measurement system based on existing medical ultrasound platforms. This system relies on acoustic radiation force to invoke transient response on soft tissue, and employs displacement estimation algorithms to detect the propagation of shear wave. The research proves that the velocity of the shear wave may serve as a reliable estimation of the Young's modulus and viscosity coefficient of the liver tissue, and existing commercial products may be easily adapted to support this technique without extra hardware cost.
Algorithms ; Animals ; Elastic Modulus ; Elasticity Imaging Techniques ; instrumentation ; methods ; Liver Cirrhosis ; diagnostic imaging ; Viscosity

According to the increasing need for accurate staging of hepatic fibrosis, the ultrasound (US) elastography techniques have evolved significantly over the past two decades. Currently, US elastography is increasingly used in clinical practice. Previously published studies have demonstrated the excellent diagnostic performance of US elastography for the detection and staging of liver fibrosis. Although US elastography may seem easy to perform and interpret, there are many technical and clinical factors which can affect the results of US elastography. Therefore, clinicians who are involved with US elastography should be aware of these factors. The purpose of this article is to present a brief overview of US techniques with the relevant technology, the clinical indications, diagnostic performance, and technical and biological factors which should be considered in order to avoid misinterpretation of US elastography results.
Disease Progression ; Elasticity Imaging Techniques/instrumentation/*methods ; Fatty Liver/complications/diagnostic imaging ; Humans ; Hypertension, Portal/complications ; Liver/*diagnostic imaging/physiopathology ; Liver Cirrhosis/diagnostic imaging/pathology

To compare transient elastorgaphy (FibroTouch) and acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) in diagnosis of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B.One hundred and forty five patients with chronic hepatitis B underwent FibroTouch and ARFI examinations in Xixi Hospital of Hangzhou from January to November 2015. The liver stiffness (LSM) was detected by FibroTouch and the liver shear wave velocity (VTQ) was detected by ARFI; liver biopsy was performed in all patients. With biopsy results as gold standards, the diagnostic values of FibroTouch and ARFI for liver fibrosis were analyzed with Spearman correlation analysis and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve.The correlation coefficient of FibroTouch and ARFI was 0.746 (<0.01). FibroTouch and ARFI were significantly correlated with pathological stage determined by liver biopsy(=0.705 and 0.727, all<0.01). When 8.4 kPa was taken as the cut-off value of LSM and 1.49 m/s was taken as the cut-off value of VTQ, the areas under ROC (AUCs) were 0.857 and 0.836 (>0.05) in diagnosis of fibrosis S≥2 stage; when 10.8 kPa of LSM and 1.49 m/s of VTQ were used as cut-off values, the AUCs were 0.872 and 0.881 (>0.05) in diagnosis of S≥3 stage; when 12.3 kPa of LSM and 1.81m/s of VTQ were used as cut-off values, the AUCs were 0.875 and 0.888 (>0.05) in diagnosis of S=4 stage.Both FibroTouch and ARFI can be effectively used in evaluation of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B.
Biopsy ; Elasticity Imaging Techniques ; instrumentation ; methods ; Hepatitis B, Chronic ; complications ; diagnostic imaging ; Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis ; diagnostic imaging ; etiology ; Predictive Value of Tests ; ROC Curve

OBJECTIVETo investigate the factors influencing the success rate and stability of transient elastography(FibroScan)for assessment of liver fibrosis.

METHODSLiver stiffness was assessed using transient elastography in totally 637 subjects including healthy subjects, asymptomatic hepatitis B virus (HBV) carriers, patients with chronic hepatitis B and patients with HBV-related cirrhosis. Of these subjects, 302 received 2 examinations and totalling 939 examinations were performed. In each case, one operator performed 2 consecutive series of 10 validated measurements, or 2 operators performed a series of 10 validated measurements. The factors including gender, age, body mass index (BMI) and the state of diseases were analyzed for their association with the success of the examination. Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was used to evaluate the reproducibility of the operation.

RESULTSFailure of the measurement occurred in 14 cases (2.2%), which was not associated with the age of the subjects and the state of diseases. The success rate of measurement decreased as the BMI increased (t=3.112, P=0.002), and was lower in female subjects (t=-2.193, P=0.029). The intra- and inter-operator stability of liver stiffness measurement was satisfactory, with ICC of 0.970 and 0.847, respectively. But for healthy subjects and asymptomatic HBV carriers, the stability was lower, with ICC of 0.736 and 0.639, respectively. Liver stiffness in patients with liver cirrhosis was positively correlated to complications and Child-Turcotte-Pugh (CTP) score.

CONCLUSIONLiver stiffness measurement has high stability with FibroScan, and high BMI could lower success rate of the measurement. Liver stiffness as measured by FibroScan allows prediction of the liver function and presence of complications in patients with liver cirrhosis.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Child ; Elasticity Imaging Techniques ; instrumentation ; methods ; Female ; Hepatitis B, Chronic ; complications ; Humans ; Liver Cirrhosis ; diagnosis ; etiology ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Young Adult