Normal values of liver elasticity measured by real-time tissue elastography (RTE) in healthy infants and children.

PURPOSE: To define normal values of liver elasticity measured by real-time tissue elastography (RTE) in healthy infants and children. METHODS: RTE was performed on 91 children and adolescents by two experienced observers (female, n = 43; male, n = 48) and in two age groups (0-10 years, n = 45; 11-20 years, n = 46). Hepatopathies were excluded clinically by extensive laboratory testing and by ultrasound. RTE provides a histogram from a region of interest (ROI) in the liver representing the degree of stiffness of the liver. The distribution of the colors in the histogram corresponds to organ elasticity. By calculating the mean of stiffness values, a numerical value is expressed in arbitrary units (a.u.) representing the mean elasticity of the liver (MEAN). Additionally, the percentage values of relatively stiffer areas (color coded in blue) in the ROI can be calculated (%AREA). A Mann-Whitney U test was performed for these two parameters according to gender. The reproducibility of these values was determined with an intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) test on another group of 18 healthy volunteers. RESULTS: The median elasticity was 106 a.u. Gender did not have an influence on the parameters (MEAN: p = 0.052; %AREA: p = 0.051). Age-specific analyses did not yield any significant difference between the two age groups for either of the two analyzed parameters (MEAN: p = 0.059; %AREA: p = 0.058). The ICC test demonstrated a moderate agreement for MEAN (ICC = 0.582) and %AREA (ICC = 0.659). CONCLUSION: Real-time elastography is a new sonography-based method and may be used as a supportive analysis to assess liver parenchyma elasticity in children, especially when fibrosis is suspected. We measured RTE normal values in children as reference data.

Portocaval shunt can optimize transhepatic flow following extended hepatectomy: a short-term study in a porcine model.

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether the portocaval shunt (PCS) corrects these unwanted changes in transhepatic flow after extended hepatectomy (EH). Forty female Landrace pigs were divided into two main groups: (A) EH (75%) and (B) no EH. Group A was divided into 3 subgroups: (A1) EH without PCS; (A2) EH with side-to-side PCS; and (A3) EH with end-to-side PCS. Group B was divided into 2 subgroups: (B1) side-to-side PCS and (B2) end-to-side PCS. HAF, PVF, and PVP were measured in each animal before and after the surgical procedure. EH increased the PVF/100 g (173%, p < 0.001) and PVP (68%, p < 0.001) but reduced the HAF/100 g (22%, p = 0.819). Following EH, side-to-side PCS reduced the increased PVF (78%, p < 0.001) and PVP (38%, p = 0.001). Without EH, side-to-side PCS reduced the PVF/100 g (68%, p < 0.001) and PVP (12%, p = 0.237). PVP was reduced by end-to-side PCS following EH by 48% (p < 0.001) and without EH by 21% (p = 0.075). PCS can decrease and correct the elevated PVP and PVF/100 g after EH to close to the normal values prior to resection. The decreased HAF/100 g in the remnant liver following EH is increased and corrected through PCS.

Small for Size and Flow (SFSF) syndrome: An alternative description for posthepatectomy liver failure.

Small for Size Syndrome (SFSS) syndrome is a recognizable clinical syndrome occurring in the presence of a reduced mass of liver, which is insufficient to maintain normal liver function. A definition has yet to be fully clarified, but it is a common clinical syndrome following partial liver transplantation and extended hepatectomy, which is characterized by postoperative liver dysfunction with prolonged cholestasis and coagulopathy, portal hypertension, and ascites. So far, this syndrome has been discussed with focus on the remnant size of the liver after partial liver transplantation or extended hepatectomy. However, the current viewpoints believe that the excessive flow of portal vein for the volume of the liver parenchyma leads to over-pressure, sinusoidal endothelial damages and haemorrhage. The new hypothesis declares that in both extended hepatectomy and partial liver transplantation, progression of Small for Size Syndrome is not determined only by the "size" of the liver graft or remnant, but by the hemodynamic parameters of the hepatic circulation, especially portal vein flow. Therefore, we suggest the term "Small for Size and Flow (SFSF)" for this syndrome. We believe that it is important for liver surgeons to know the pathogenesis and manifestation of this syndrome to react early enough preventing non-reversible tissue damages.

Hepatic Hemodynamic Changes Following Stepwise Liver Resection.

AIM: Extended liver resection has increased during the last decades. However, hepatic hemodynamic changes after resection and the consequent complications like post hepatectomy liver failure are still a challenging issue. The aim of this study was to systematically evaluate the role of stepwise liver resection on hepatic hemodynamic changes. METHODS: To evaluate this effect we performed 25, 50, and 75 % sequential liver resections in 10 pigs. Before and after each resection, the hepatic artery flow and portal vein flow in relation to the remnant liver volume (RLV) as well as hepatic vascular pressures were measured and compared between the groups. RESULTS: Following sequential liver resection, the hepatic artery flow /100 g decreases and the portal vein flow increases up to 17 and 167 % following extended liver resection (75 %), respectively. Also, during stepwise liver resection, the portal vein pressure increases gradually up to 33 % following extended hepatectomy (75 %). CONCLUSION: Sequential decrease in the RLV decreases the hepatic artery flow /100 g and increases the portal vein flow /100 g and portal vein pressure. As the consequence, the liver goes under more poor-oxygenated blood supply and higher pressure. This may be one of the most important mechanisms of the post hepatectomy liver failure in case of extended liver resection.

Measurement of real-time tissue elastography in a phantom model and comparison with transient elastography in pediatric patients with liver diseases.

PURPOSE: We aimed to determine the comparability of real-time tissue elastography (RTE) and transient elastography (TE) in pediatric patients with liver diseases. MATERIALS AND METHODS: RTE was performed on the Elasticity QA Phantom Model 049 (Computerized Imaging Reference Systems Company Inc., Norfolk, Virginia, USA), which has five areas with different levels of stiffness. RTE measurements of relative stiffness (MEAN [mean value of tissue elasticity], AREA [% of blue color-coded stiffer tissue]) in the phantom were compared with the phantom stiffness specified in kPa (measurement unit of TE). RTE and TE were performed on 147 pediatric patients with various liver diseases. A total of 109 measurements were valid. The participants had following diseases: metabolic liver disease (n=25), cystic fibrosis (n=20), hepatopathy of unknown origin (n=11), autoimmune hepatitis (n=12), Wilson's disease (n=11), and various liver parenchyma alterations (n=30). Correlations between RTE and TE measurements in the patients were calculated. In addition, RTE was performed on a control group (n=30), and the RTE values between the patient and control groups were compared. RESULTS: The RTE parameters showed good correlation in the phantom model with phantom stiffness (MEAN/kPa, r=-0.97; AREA/kPa, r=0.98). However, the correlation of RTE and TE was weak in the patient group (MEAN/kPa, r=-0.23; AREA/kPa, r=0.24). A significant difference was observed between the patient and control groups (MEAN, P = 5.32 e-7; AREA, P = 1.62 e-6). CONCLUSION: In the phantom model, RTE was correlated with kPa, confirming the presumed comparability of the methods. However, there was no direct correlation between RTE and TE in patients with defined liver diseases under real clinical conditions.