title: Evaluation of Liver Stiffness After Radioembolization by Real-Time ShearWave™ Elastography: Preliminary Study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the effect of ShearWave(™) elastography (SWE) for the assessment of liver fibrosis after radioembolization (RE) in patients with liver malignancies.
  
  
  METHODS
  We prospectively examined the effects of SWE before and after RE in 17 adult patients, from June 2012 to September 2013. All patients underwent SWE within 1 month before and 3 months (96.3 ± 22.9 days) after RE. Measurements were taken in segments III, IV, V, and VI (lateral/medial left lobe and anterior/posterior right lobe, respectively). Liver stiffness was studied in the 39 treated segments.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean stiffness of liver tissue according to the pre-RE SWE measurements was not different from the post-RE SWE measurements in the segments that did not undergo RE. Conversely, segments treated with RE were significantly stiffer according to the post-RE SWE measurements (mean SWE 17.4 kPa) than according to the baseline measurements (7.0 kPa) (p < 0.001). Patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and preexisting infection with hepatitis B and C viruses had higher pre-embolization stiffness, and the post-embolization stiffness of the treated segments in these patients was higher than that in the remainder of the study population.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data suggest that SWE measurements of liver stiffness increase as early as the third month after RE. SWE could be used as a noninvasive complementary imaging method for preliminary assessment of liver fibrosis before and after RE.
authors.affiliation: Department of Interventional Radiology, Cerrahpasa Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, KMPasa, Fatih, Istanbul, 34098, Turkey, dr.ahmetbas@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Ahmet
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bas
authors.forename: Cesur
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Samanci
authors.forename: Fatih
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gulsen
authors.forename: Murat
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cantasdemir
authors.forename: Levent
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Kabasakal
authors.forename: Fatih
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Kantarci
authors.forename: Furuzan
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Numan
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001918:Brachytherapy; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D054459:Elasticity Imaging Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000150:complications; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000150:complications; D006801:Humans; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted; D008099:Liver / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000528:radiation effects; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D015021:Yttrium Radioisotopes / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D015021:Yttrium Radioisotopes