Patients with chronic hepatitis B are at increased risk of cirrhosis. Assessment of fibrosis has important prognostic implications that can guide clinical therapy.
This article describes the results of a recent study, carried out in a large group of normal subjects and chronic hepatitis B patients, to evaluate the utility of ShearWave Elastography (SWE) for assessment of liver fibrosis. The results were correlated with those of biopsies.
The study established clear benefits from the use of SWE in HBV-infected patients and showed that the measured liver elasticity was correlated with the stage of liver fibrosis. Measurement of the stiffness of the spleen by SWE may also be useful, especially in cases where SWE of the liver is difficult.
By Dr Vivian Y. F. Leung & Prof Winnie C.
W. Chu