Spleen stiffness by 2-D shear wave elastography is the most accurate predictor of high-risk esophagogastric varices in children with biliary atresia

Shinya Yokoyama, Masatoshi Ishigami, Takashi Honda, Teiji Kuzuya, Yoji Ishizu, Takanori Ito, Yoshiki Hirooka, Yujiro Tanaka, Takahisa Tainaka, Chiyoe Shirota, Kosuke Chiba, Hiroo Uchida, Mitsuhiro Fujishiro

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

31 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Aim: Esophagogastric variceal hemorrhage is a cause of poor prognosis in patients with biliary atresia (BA). To prevent variceal hemorrhage, simple and reliable screening methods for high-risk esophagogastric varices (HR-EGV) are needed. We evaluated the efficacy of liver stiffness (LS) and spleen stiffness (SS) as measured by 2-D shear wave elastography (2D-SWE), which was reported to be more accurate than transient elastography, for detecting HR-EGV in children with BA. Methods: Thirty-four children with BA were enrolled. Both LS and SS were measured by 2D-SWE. The presence of large esophageal varices or esophageal varices of any size with red wale marking and/or the presence of gastric varices along the cardia were defined as HR-EGV. Clinical data were collected and previously reported prediction indices for varices were calculated. Results: Liver stiffness and SS were obtained from all patients. Fourteen patients showed HR-EGV. Significantly different variables between patients with and without HR-EGV were as follows: spleen diameter (116 mm vs. 95 mm), clinical prediction rule (104.7 vs. 124.7), King's variceal prediction score (78.8 vs. 99.4), aspartic aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index (2.03 vs. 0.98), LS (2.63 m/s vs. 1.87 m/s), and SS (4.44 m/s vs. 3.69 m/s). The highest area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for detecting HR-EGV was that for SS (0.900), and the cut-off SS of 4.12 m/s yielded 92.9% sensitivity and 90% specificity. The intraclass correlation coefficient for intra-observer reproducibility was 0.828. Conclusions: Spleen stiffness from 2D-SWE offered the most accurate predictor of HR-EGV in BA children.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1162-1168
Number of pages7
JournalHepatology Research
Volume49
Issue number10
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 01-10-2019
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Hepatology
  • Infectious Diseases

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