Contrast-enhanced ultrasound in focal liver lesions

The incidence of liver tumors is increasing. Up to 1/3 of the general population has diagnosed one or multiple benign lesions. The overall aim of this thesis was to address various aspects of diagnostic contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) and its capabilities in relation to benign and malignant liver tumors, to other radiological methods, its cost-effectivity and various other topics related to its use. “Is the lesion in the liver benign or malignant?” and “What kind of benign (malignant) lesion is it?” In imaging algorithms, position of liver CEUS is not precisely yet stated. It is somewhere between the quick, generally available, cheap but unspecific and less sensitive B-mode ultrasound and highly specific, costly and academic MRI. We examined various positions of CEUS diagnostics, mainly in liver adenoma and focal nodular hyperplasia, the two most important solid benign liver lesions. Relation of CEUS and point shear wave elastography in these tumors, was also explored. We did not found a strong relation. Further we did the first ever comparison of CEUS to CT in liver pancreas adenocarcinoma metastasis. CEUS improves cost-effectiveness in focal liver lesions, our analysis added the therapeutic phase to this model, as well

Can point shear wave elastography differentiate focal nodular hyperplasia from hepatocellular adenoma

Purpose: Focal nodular hyperplasia (FNH) and hepatocellular adenoma (HCA) are liver tumors that require different management. We assessed the potential of point shear wave elastography (pSWE) to differentiate FNH from HCA and the interobserver and intraobserver reliability of pSWE in the examination of these lesions and of native liver tissue (NLT). Methods: The study included 88 patients (65 FNH, 23 HCA). pSWE was performed by two experienced liver sonographers (observers 1 [O1] and 2 [O2]) and acquired within the lesion of interest and NLT. Group differences, optimal cutoff for characterization and interobserver reliability was assessed with Mann-Whitney-U, area under the ROC curce (AUROC) and intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Intraobserver reliability in NLT was assessed in 20 healthy subjects using ICC. Results: Median stiffness was significantly higher in FNH than in HCA (7.01 kPa vs 4.98 kPa for O1 (P=0.017) and 7.68 kPa vs 6.00 kPa for O2 (P=0.031)). A cutoff point for differentiation between the two entities could not be determined with an AUROC of 0.67 (O1) and 0.69 (O2). Interobserver reliability was good for lesion- stiffness (ICC=0.86) and poor for NLT stiffness (ICC=0.09). In healthy subjects, intraobserver reliability for NLT-stiffness was poor for O1 (ICC=0.23) and moderate for O2 (ICC=0.62). Conclusion: This study shows that pSWE cannot reliably differentiate FNH from HCA. Interobserver and intraobserver reliability for pSWE in NLT were insufficient. Interpretation of results gained with this method should be done with great caution

High-Frame-Rate Contrast-enhanced US Particle Image Velocimetry in the Abdominal Aorta: First Human Results

Cardiovascular Aspects of Radiolog

Conservative treatment versus elective repair of umbilical hernia in patients with liver cirrhosis and ascites: results of a randomized controlled trial (CRUCIAL trial)

Purpose: To establish optimal management of patients with an umbilical hernia complicated by liver cirrhosis and ascites. Methods: Patients with a

Recurrence of primary sclerosing cholangitis after liver transplantation - analysing the European Liver Transplant Registry and beyond

Liver transplantation for primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) can be complicated by recurrence of PSC (rPSC). This may compromise graft survival but the effect on patient survival is less clear. We investigated the effect of post-transplant rPSC on graft and patient survival in a large European cohort. Registry data from the European Liver Transplant Registry regarding all first transplants for PSC between 1980 and 2015 were supplemented with detailed data on rPSC from 48 out of 138 contributing transplant centres, involving 1,549 patients. Bayesian proportional hazards models were used to investigate the impact of rPSC and other covariates on patient and graft survival. Recurrence of PSC was diagnosed in 259 patients (16.7%) after a median follow-up of 5.0 years (quantile 2.5%-97.5%: 0.4-18.5), with a significant negative impact on both graft (HR 6.7; 95% CI 4.9-9.1) and patient survival (HR 2.3; 95% CI 1.5-3.3). Patients with rPSC underwent significantly more re-transplants than those without rPSC (OR 3.6, 95% CI 2.7-4.8). PSC recurrence has a negative impact on both graft and patient survival, independent of transplant-related covariates. Recurrence of PSC leads to higher number of re-transplantations and a 33% decrease in 10-year graft survival.Cellular mechanisms in basic and clinical gastroenterology and hepatolog

Recurrence of primary sclerosing cholangitis after liver transplantation – analysing the European Liver Transplant Registry and beyond

Liver transplantation for primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) can be complicated by recurrence of PSC (rPSC). This may compromise graft survival but the effect on patient survival is less clear. We investigated the effect of post-transplant rPSC on graft and patient survival in a large European cohort. Registry data from the European Liver Transplant Registry regarding all first transplants for PSC between 1980 and 2015 were supplemented with detailed data on rPSC from 48 out of 138 contributing transplant centres, involving 1,549 patients. Bayesian proportional hazards models were used to investigate the impact of rPSC and other covariates on patient and graft survival. Recurrence of PSC was diagnosed in 259 patients (16.7%) after a median follow-up of 5.0 years (quantile 2.5%-97.5%: 0.4–18.5), with a significant negative impact on both graft (HR 6.7; 95% CI 4.9–9.1) and patient survival (HR 2.3; 95% CI 1.5–3.3). Patients with rPSC underwent significantly more re-transplants than those without rPSC (OR 3.6, 95% CI 2.7–4.8). PSC recurrence has a negative impact on both graft and patient survival, independent of transplant-related covariates. Recurrence of PSC leads to higher number of re-transplantations and a 33% decrease in 10-year graft survival

Oud maar nieuw. HOVO-lezing 2012

Public Health and primary carePrevention, Population and Disease management (PrePoD