REVIEW  LIVER ELASTOGRAPHY 

Minerva Gastroenterology 2021 June;67(2):129-40

DOI: 10.23736/S2724-5985.20.02787-7

Copyright © 2020 EDIZIONI MINERVA MEDICA

language: English

What does liver elastography measure? Technical aspects and methodology

Christoph F. DIETRICH ¹ ✉, Long SHI ², Qi WEI ³, Yi DONG ⁴, Xin-Wu CUI ³, Axel LÖWE ¹, Mathias WORNI ^{5, 6, 7}, Giovanna FERRAIOLI ⁸

¹ Department Allgemeine Innere Medizin (DAIM), Kliniken Beau Site, Salem und Permanence, Hirslanden, Bern, Switzerland; ² Department of Ultrasound, Jingmen N. 2 People’s Hospital, Jingmen, China; ³ Department of Medical Ultrasound, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China; ⁴ Department of Ultrasound, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China; ⁵ Department of Visceral Surgery, Clarunis, University Center for Gastrointestinal and Liver Diseases, St. Clara University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland; ⁶ Swiss Institute for Translational and Entrepreneurial Medicine, Stiftung Lindenhof, Campus SLB, Bern, Switzerland; ⁷ Department of Surgery, Clinic Beau Site, Bern, Switzerland; ⁸ Department of Clinical, Surgical, Diagnostic and Pediatric Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy

Elastography can be thought as an extension of the ancient technique of palpation. After giving a short introduction to the history of elastography, the different technologies that are nowadays available and the physics behind them, the article focuses on the assessment of liver stiffness in patients with diffuse liver disease using shear wave elastography (SWE). Practical advices on how to perform the SWE techniques and on the factors that should be considered for a correct interpretation of the results are given. This paper aimed to provide a practical guide for beginners and advanced clinical users to better understand technical aspects, methodologies and terminology.

KEY WORDS: Liver; Review; Gastroenterology