COULD ULTRASOUND ELASTOGRAPHY REFLECT LIVER FUNCTION?

The purpose of this study was to investigate whether ultrasound elastography reflects liver function reserve relative to liver fibrosis histology. Sixty-five New Zealand rabbits were divided into an experimental group (n =45) and a control group (n = 20). In the experimental group, liver fibrosis (F1-F4) was induced by subcutaneous injection of carbon tetrachloride. Point shear wave elastography and the indocyanine green (ICG) elimination test were performed for the two groups at 4-wk intervals for 56 wk. The liver stiffness value (LSV) and the ICG retention rate at 15 min (ICGR15) were obtained, and the correlation between them was investigated. The median LSVs of stages F0-F4 were 3.92 kPa (1.91-8.53 kPa), 5.02 kPa (239-8.91 kPa), 7.87 kPa (5.21-12.26 kPa), 12.83 kPa (5.92-16.79 kPa) and 16.64 kPa (9.76-29.50 kPa), respectively. The median ICGR15 values of stages F0-F4 were 8.7% (4.8%-15.6%), 10.8% (5.6%-203%), 19.2% (12.3%-26.7%), 31.0% (20.9%41.0%) and 45.6% (22.1%60.9%). There were significant differences in LSVs and ICGR15 values among the different stages of liver fibrosis (p < 0.01). A positive correlation was observed between LSV and ICGR15 (r = 0.7497, p < 0.0001). A strong correlation was observed between liver stiffness and liver function reserve, indicating ultrasound elastography may reflect liver function reserve in different degrees of liver fibrosis. (C) 2018 Published by Elsevier Inc. on behalf of World Federation for Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology.

本研究旨在探讨超声弹性成像是否能反映与肝纤维化组织学相关的肝功能储备。65只新西兰白兔被分为实验组（n = 45）和对照组（n = 20）。在实验组中，通过皮下注射四氯化碳诱导肝纤维化（F1 - F4期）。对两组动物每隔4周进行一次点剪切波弹性成像和吲哚菁绿（ICG）清除试验，共持续56周。获取肝脏硬度值（LSV）和15分钟时的吲哚菁绿滞留率（ICGR15），并研究它们之间的相关性。F0 - F4期的中位LSV分别为3.92 kPa（1.91 - 8.53 kPa）、5.02 kPa（2.39 - 8.91 kPa）、7.87 kPa（5.21 - 12.26 kPa）、12.83 kPa（5.92 - 16.79 kPa）和16.64 kPa（9.76 - 29.50 kPa）。F0 - F4期的中位ICGR15值分别为8.7%（4.8% - 15.6%）、10.8%（5.6% - 20.3%）、19.2%（12.3% - 26.7%）、31.0%（20.9% - 41.0%）和45.6%（22.1% - 60.9%）。肝纤维化不同阶段的LSV和ICGR15值存在显著差异（p < 0.01）。观察到LSV和ICGR15之间呈正相关（r = 0.7497，p < 0.0001）。肝脏硬度和肝功能储备之间存在强相关性，表明超声弹性成像可能反映不同程度肝纤维化中的肝功能储备。（C）2018由爱思唯尔公司代表世界医学与生物学超声联合会出版。