title: Focal hypoechoic regions in the liver at the porta hepatis: prevalence in ambulatory patients.
abstract: We prospectively performed hepatic sonography on 534 ambulatory patients to determine the prevalence of one or more focal hypoechoic areas in the liver adjacent to the gallbladder or portal vein. Obese patients were identified via the body mass index calculated from height and weight data. Among our patients, 5.3% demonstrated at least one focal hypoechoic area. Of the patients with positive results, 65.4% were obese, compared to 42.8% of the remainder of the patients (P = 0.016). Focal hypoechoic regions in the liver at the porta hepatis may be more prevalent than previously believed and are more prevalent in obese than nonobese patients.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000553:Ambulatory Care; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005234:Fatty Liver / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000150:complications; D011169:Portal Vein; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D014463:Ultrasonography