Acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) elastography compared with biopsy for evaluating hepatic fibrosis after liver transplantation: a cross-sectional diagnostic study

Abstract

CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE: Biopsies are used after liver transplantation to evaluate fibrosis. This study aimed to evaluate the elasticity of transplanted livers by means of a non-invasive examination, acoustic radiation force imaging (ARFI) elastography, correlating the results with the histological analysis. DESIGN AND SETTING: Cross-sectional study in a public university hospital. METHODS: All patients consecutively operated between 2002 and 2010 with an indication for biopsy were evaluated by means of elastography. The radiologist evaluating ARFI and the pathologist doing anatomopathological examinations were blinded to each other's evaluations. RESULTS: During the study period, 33 patients were included. The indication for transplantation was cirrhosis due to hepatitis C in 21 cases (63%). Liver biopsies showed absence of fibrosis (F0)

The diagnostic accuracy of liver fibrosis in non-viral liver diseases using acoustic radiation force impulse elastography: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…As to the cutoff values for staging hepatic fibrosis, several studies have provided clues and values to help improve the clinical decision. As early as the year 2011, Friedrich-Rust et al reported the different cutoff values for liver fibrosis staging [32]. The values are 1.34 m/s for significant fibrosis (F�2), 1.55 m/s for severe fibrosis (F�3) and 1.80 m/s for cirrhosis (F = 4) from 518 patients.…”

Application value of real-time shear wave elastography in differential diagnosis of testicular torsion

“…Elastography is widely used in the diagnosis of liver fibrosis and in the differential diagnosis of liver, breast and thyroid tumors. By evaluating the hardness of the pathological tissue of these organs, the nature and de-gree of the lesion can be determined [19][20][21]. Elastography was also applied in testicular pathology, including tumors and spermatogenic function in infertile patients [22][23][24].…”

Efficiency of acoustic radiation force impulse imaging for the staging of graft fibrosis after liver transplantation

“…Accordingly, ARFI is expected to be better than serum markers and composite markers for the evaluation of fibrosis in liver transplant patients. However, only a few small studies have been published that assessed the efficacy of ARFI in the post‐transplant setting, and these results are inconclusive, probably because of a small sample size . Additionally, measurement using FibroScan, which is based on the M‐mode and A‐mode imaging of ultrasonography, is not a real‐time procedure.…”

“…Our previous report showed that LSM by ARFI was useful for predicting post‐hepatectomy liver failure in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma . The utility of FibroScan for the assessment of graft fibrosis after LT has been reported by several studies, however, the utility of ARFI has been evaluated by only a few studies involving small number of patients with inconclusive results …”