title: Shear wave elastography in the evaluation of rejection or recurrent hepatitis after liver transplantation.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine whether shear wave elastography (SWE) would be useful in evaluating the presence of rejection or recurrent hepatitis for post-liver transplantation (LT) follow-up.
  
  
  METHODS
  This retrospective study was approved by our Institutional Review Board and informed consent was waived. Two hundred sixteen liver recipients and 37 liver donors received SWE and concurrent liver biopsy. Of the liver recipients, 142 patients underwent SWE > 4 weeks after the LT (group 1) and 74 patients underwent SWE ≤ 4 weeks after the LT (group 2). Liver stiffness (LS) was compared among groups of donor, no rejection, acute rejection and recurrent hepatitis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In group 1, LS was higher in patients with rejection or hepatitis than in patients without rejection or indefinite rejection (12.29 ± 8.13 kPa vs. 6.33 ± 2.10 kPa, respectively, P < 0.001). In group 2, there was no difference in LS between patients with rejection (n = 8) and those without rejection (n = 61; P > 0.05). The liver recipients without rejection or hepatitis in both groups showed significantly higher LS than the liver donors (P < 0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  SWE may be used as a non-invasive complementary tool to detect rejection or recurrent hepatitis at follow-up > 4 weeks after the LT.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  • Shear wave ultrasound elastography may be useful at follow-up after liver transplantation • Rejection or hepatitis can be predicted >4 weeks after liver transplantation • Normal liver grafts are stiffer than normal liver.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Radiation Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine, 101 Daehak-ro, Jongno-gu, Seoul 110-744, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Jeong Hee
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Yoon
authors.forename: Jae Young
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Hyun Sik
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Woo
authors.forename: Mi Hye
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Eun Sun
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Ijin
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Joo
authors.forename: Kyoung Bun
authors.initials: KB
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Nam-Joon
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Yi
authors.forename: Yoon Jin
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Joon Koo
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Byung Ihn
authors.initials: BI
authors.lastname: Choi
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001706:Biopsy / Q000379:methods; D002648:Child; D054459:Elasticity Imaging Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006084:Graft Rejection / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006505:Hepatitis / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000473:pathology*; D016031:Liver Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011312:Pressure; D012008:Recurrence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D033081:Shear Strength; D055815:Young Adult