title: The role of ultrasound elastographic techniques in chronic liver disease: current status and future perspectives.
abstract: This review illustrates the state of the art clinical applications and the future perspectives of ultrasound elastographic methods for the evaluation of chronic liver diseases, including the most widely used and validated technique, transient elastography, followed by shear wave elastography and strain imaging elastography. Liver ultrasound elastography allows the non-invasive evaluation of liver stiffness, providing information regarding the stage of fibrosis, comparable to liver biopsy which is still considered the gold standard; in this way, it can help physicians in managing patients, including the decision as to when to start antiviral treatment. The characterization of focal liver lesions and the prognostic role of the elastographic technique in the prediction of complications of cirrhosis are still under investigation.
authors.affiliation: Division of Internal Medicine, University of Bologna, General and University Hospital S. Orsola-Malpighi, Bologna, Italy. Electronic address: fabio.piscaglia@unibo.it.
authors.forename: Fabio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Piscaglia
authors.affiliation: Division of Internal Medicine, University of Bologna, General and University Hospital S. Orsola-Malpighi, Bologna, Italy. Electronic address: sara_marinelli@libero.it.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Marinelli
authors.affiliation: Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy "Victor Babeş", Timişoara, Romania. Electronic address: bota_simona1982@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Simona
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bota
authors.affiliation: Division of Medical Liver Transplant Care, General and University Hospital S. Orsola-Malpighi, Bologna, Italy. Electronic address: carla.serra@aosp.bo.it.
authors.forename: Carla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Serra
authors.affiliation: Division of Internal Medicine, University of Bologna, General and University Hospital S. Orsola-Malpighi, Bologna, Italy. Electronic address: laura.venerandi@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Venerandi
authors.affiliation: Division of Internal Medicine, University of Bologna, General and University Hospital S. Orsola-Malpighi, Bologna, Italy. Electronic address: leonisimona@yahoo.it.
authors.forename: Simona
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Leoni
authors.affiliation: Division of Internal Medicine, University of Bologna, General and University Hospital S. Orsola-Malpighi, Bologna, Italy. Electronic address: veronica.salvatore@unibo.it.
authors.forename: Veronica
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Salvatore
mesh_terms: D055119:Elastic Modulus; D054459:Elasticity Imaging Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D058625:End Stage Liver Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005544:Forecasting; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*
keywords: Cirrhosis; Diagnosis; Fibrosis; Portal hypertension; Viral hepatitis