title: Real-time elastography with a novel quantitative technology for assessment of liver fibrosis in chronic hepatitis B.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The accurate evaluation of liver fibrosis stage is important in determining the treatment strategy. The limitations of percutaneous liver biopsy as the gold standard are obvious for invasion. Real-time elastography with conventional ultrasound probes and a new quantitative technology for diffuse histological lesion is a novel approach for staging of liver fibrosis.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  This study aimed to evaluate the value of real-time tissue elastography with a new quantitative technology for the assessment of liver fibrosis stage.
  
  
  METHODS
  Real-time elastography was performed in 55 patients with liver fibrosis and chronic hepatitis B and in 20 healthy volunteers. Eleven parameters for every patient in colorcode image obtained from the real-time elastography were analyzed with principal components analysis. We analyzed the correlation between elasticity index and liver fibrosis stage and the accuracy of real-time elastography for liver fibrosis staging. Additionally, aspartate transaminase-to-platelet ratio index was also included in the analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The Spearman's correlation coefficient between the elasticity index and the histologic fibrosis stage was 0.81, which is highly significant (p<0.001). The areas under receiver operating characteristic curves indicating diagnostic accuracy were 0.93 (F≥F1, p<0.001) for the diagnosis of liver fibrosis, 0.92 (F≥F2, p<0.001), 0.84 (F≥F3, p<0.05) and 0.66 (F=F4, p>0.05), respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Real-time elastography with a new quantitative technology for diffuse histological lesion is a new and promising sonography-based noninvasive method for the assessment of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ultrasonography, The First Affiliated Hospital of Medical College, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Shaanxi 710061, China.
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Long
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Xiuying
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.forename: Wenqian
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.forename: Yunfei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Bai
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ai
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000465:Algorithms; D003199:Computer Systems; D054459:Elasticity Imaging Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology*; D008297:Male; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity