title: [Noninvasive assessment of oesophageal varices presence and size in patients with liver cirrhosis using right liver lobe/serum albumin concentration].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Liver cirrhosis is a chronic, progressive disease and it is usually accompanied by portal hypertension. The development of oesophageal varices (OV) is one of the major complications of portal hypertension. Cirrhotic patients should be screened for the presence of OV when portal hypertension is diagnozed. In order to reduce the increasing burden that endoscopy units have to bear, some studies have attempted to identify parameters for noninvasive prediction of OV presence. The aim of our study was to evaluate the value of biochemical and ultrasonography parameters for prediction of OV presence.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study included 58 cirrhotic patients who underwent a complete biochemical workup, ultrasonography examination and upper digestive endoscopy. Right liver lobe diameter/albumin ratio was calculated and its correlation to the presence and degree of OV, and Child-Pugh score of liver cirrhosis explored.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean age of the patients included in the study was 53.07+/-13.09 years; 40 were males and 18 females. In the Child-Pugh class A were 53.4% patients, class B 39.7%, whereas 6.9% were in the class C. In 24.1% of the patients no OV were identified by upper digestive endoscopy, 19% had OV grade I, 34.5% grade II, 20.7% grade III, and 1.7% OV grade IV. The mean value of the right liver lobe diameter/albumin ratio was 5.43+/-1.79 (range of 2.76-11.44). Statistically significant correlation (p < 0.01) was confirm by Spearman's test between OV grade and calculated index (p = 0.441).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The right liver lobe diameter/albumin ratio is a noninvasive parameter which provides an accurate information pertinent to the determination of OV presence and their grading in patients with liver cirrhosis.
authors.affiliation: Institut za bolesti digestivnog sistema, Klinika za gastroenterologiju i hepatologiju, Beograd. altam@EUnet.yu
authors.forename: Tamara
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Alempijević
authors.forename: Vladislava
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Bulat
authors.forename: Nada
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kovacević
authors.forename: Rada
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Jegić
authors.forename: Srdan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Duranović
authors.forename: Dragan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Tomić
authors.forename: Miodrag
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Krstić
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D004932:Esophageal and Gastric Varices / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006975:Hypertension, Portal / Q000150:complications*; D008099:Liver / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000150:complications*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012372:ROC Curve; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012709:Serum Albumin / Q000032:analysis*; D014463:Ultrasonography