title: Serial changes of liver stiffness measured by acoustic radiation force impulse imaging in acute liver failure: a case report.
abstract: Acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) imaging is a new technology used to determine liver elasticity. We report the case of a patient that survived hyperacute-type acute liver failure (ALF) and who showed a dramatic change in the value of shear wave velocity (SWV) measured by ARFI, which corresponded with the severity of her liver damage. The value of SWV increased significantly up to 3.6 ± 0.3 m/s during the encephalopathy phase and then decreased along with the recovery of liver function, the blood flow of the right portal vein, and the liver volume. These findings suggest the value of SWV in ALF as a reliable marker of liver tissue damage. Further investigations of the pathophysiological significance of SWV in ALF are warranted.
authors.affiliation: Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Iwate Medical University, School of Medicine, Uchimaru 19-1, Morioka, Iwate, 020-8505, Japan.
authors.forename: Hidekatsu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kuroda
authors.forename: Yasuhiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Takikawa
authors.forename: Mio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Onodera
authors.forename: Keisuke
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kakisaka
authors.forename: Yuichi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Koujiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kataoka
authors.forename: Kei
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sawara
authors.forename: Yasuhiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Miyamoto
authors.forename: Kanta
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Oikawa
authors.forename: Ryujin
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Endo
authors.forename: Kazuyuki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Suzuki
mesh_terms: D001706:Biopsy; D054459:Elasticity Imaging Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017114:Liver Failure, Acute / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D008111:Liver Function Tests; D008875:Middle Aged