Ultrasonic measurements of portal vasculature in diagnosis of portal hypertension. A controversial subject reviewed.

Abstract

In a prospective ultrasound study, the various factors possibly influencing the portal vasculature were evaluated in normal subjects; the correlation of portal diameters with physical factors such as age, sex, and body texture was poor, whereas the caliber variation was significant with respiration, posture, and meal. Considering the fasting state, supine decubitus, and deep inspiration as suitable and standard variables, the diameters were compared in 100 healthy subjects and 50 patients with portal hypertension. The upper normal limits of portal, splenic, and superior mesenteric vein diameters were reported as 16, 12, and 11 mm, respectively, and the dimensions above these values provided an overall sensitivity of 72%, an accuracy of 91%, and a specificity of 100% in diagnosing the patients with suspected portal hypertension.

Portal Hypertension and Esophageal Varices in Cystic Fibrosis: Unreliability of Echo-Doppler Flowmetry

“…Goyal et al (18) pointed to the considerable variation in the maximum normal diameter of the portal vein; the sensitivity and specificity of increased portal vein diameter, as a marker of PH. was reported to be low (18,19). Our data show that splanchnic vein diameters are significantly increased in patients with esophageal varices in comparison with those without CLD.…”

Impairment of Changes in the Diameter of the Pancreatic Portion of the Superior Mesenteric Vein

“…In previous prospective ultrasonographic studies, various factors that may influence the portal vasculature were evaluated in unaffected patients; the correlations of the portal diameter with physical factors such as age, sex, and body texture were poor, whereas the caliber variation was significantly related to respiration, posture, and meals. [22][23][24] Those physiologic changes in the SMV were hampered by portal hypertension, and that has therefore been used as a diagnostic tool for this disease. 25,26 Signs in the pancreatic portion of the SMV are quite simple to determine, making this approach feasible as a means of first-line diagnosis.…”

Dual-Frequency Piezoelectric Endoscopic Transducer for Imaging Vascular Invasion in Pancreatic Cancer

“…portal and superior mesenteric veins via the minimally-invasive transhepatic procedure [7]). The mean diameters of the adult portal vein and superior mesenteric veins are 10.4 ± 1.6 mm and 8.1 ± 1.2, respectively [58], allowing the designed transducer to easily traverse and image from within these primary vessels as well as intraoperatively from smaller branches (e.g. superior pancreaticoduodenal veins, diameter: 2.1 ± 0.6 mm [59]).…”