Publication: Liver and Spleen Stiffness as Predictors of Esophageal Varices in Patients with Liver Cirrhosis
Files
Date
2023
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Institute of Medicine
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Introduction: The risk for the occurrence of esophageal varices in a cirrhotic patient is assessed by two gold standard invasive tests: hepatic venous pressure gradient measurement and esophagogastroduodenoscopy. We aim to find the association between spleen and liver stiffness with the occurrence of esophageal varices in our settings.
Methods:This was a prospective cross-sectional study. In the study duration of one year, 94 cirrhotic patients who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria were included. All patients were subjected to transient elastography for measuring liver and spleen stiffness and endoscopy.
Results: Of 94 patients, only 77 (81.9%) had esophageal varices. The mean liver stiffness in patients with and without varices was 19.46±4.9SD kPa and 12.92±1.52 SD kPa respectively. The difference was statistically significant, p<0.001. The mean spleen stiffness in patients with and without varices was 22.26±4.6 SD kPa and 14.08±1.20 SD kPa respectively. The difference was statistically significant, p<0.001. The optimal cut-off value of liver and spleen to detect patients with any grade of esophageal varices was 14 and 16.15 kPa respectively.
Conclusion: The stiffness of liver and spleen using transient elastography can be considered an equivalent method for screening cirrhotic patients for esophageal varices in clinical settings.
Keywords: Cirrhosis; esophageal varices; liver stiffness; spleen stiffness
Description
Shila Jaishi1, Rahul Pathak2, Brindeswari Kafle Bhandari2, Anurag Jha2, Rabin Hamal2, Dinesh Koirala2, Susmita Gyawali3
1Department of Internal Medicine, Bharatpur Hospital, Chitwan, Nepal
2Department of Gastroenterology, Maharajgunj Medical Campus, Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, Institute of Medicine, Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, Nepal
3Central Department of Public Health, Institute of Medicine, Maharajgunj, Kathmandu, Nepal
Keywords
Cirrhosis, esophageal varices, liver stiffness, spleen stiffness