title: Portal vein pulsatility in normal and cirrhotic adults without cardiac disease.
abstract: The literature indicates that Doppler demonstration of pulsatile flow in the portal vein suggests heart disease, and that retrograde transsinusoidal transmission of atrial pulsations is the mechanism. We noninvasively investigated portal vein pulsatility (PVP) in normal subjects and in patients with cardiac and liver disease, and performed invasive studies in cirrhotic humans and normal pigs. We found that accentuated PVP occurred in some normal subjects and in some patients with cirrhosis, and that mechanisms other than transsinusoidal transmission of atrial pulsations contributed to PVP. Determinants of PVP may include pulsatile portal inflow, transmission of pulsations from the vena cava (IVC) and location of the Doppler sample volume relative to the IVC.
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, University Hospital, Newark, New Jersey 07103.
authors.forename: R H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Wachsberg
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Needleman
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Wilson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D006502:Budd-Chiari Syndrome / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology; D006499:Hepatic Artery / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000502:physiology*; D006503:Hepatic Veins / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery; D008875:Middle Aged; D016343:Monitoring, Intraoperative; D011169:Portal Vein / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000502:physiology*; D011673:Pulsatile Flow / Q000502:physiology*; D013552:Swine; D014262:Tricuspid Valve Insufficiency / Q000150:complications / Q000503:physiopathology; D018608:Ultrasonography, Doppler