Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Using shear wave ultrasound to check liver after dog shunt surgery
By Toom, Merle et al.·Published in Frontiers in veterinary science·2022·Department of Morphology·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Shear wave elastography measurements in dogs treated surgically for congenital extrahepatic portosystemic shunts.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs that had surgery for congenital extrahepatic portosystemic shunts (EHPSS) underwent a new non-invasive test called elastography to check the health of their livers. This test measures how stiff the liver tissue is, which can indicate how well the surgery worked. The results showed that there were no significant differences in liver stiffness between dogs with successfully closed shunts and those with other types of shunts. However, the maximum stiffness measurement was higher when taken from one specific area of the body compared to another. Overall, the study suggests that while elastography is promising, more research is needed to fully understand its effectiveness in these cases.
People also search for: dog liver surgery recovery · congenital portosystemic shunt treatment · liver stiffness test for dogs
Abstract
Assessing the postoperative surgical success of congenital extrahepatic portosystemic shunt (EHPSS) attenuation can be challenging and involve invasive imaging methods. Elastography is an ultrasound technique that allows qualitative and quantitative estimation of tissue stiffness and has extensively been used in people with liver disease. In recent years, increased interest in this technique has developed in veterinary medicine due to its non-invasive nature, availability, and low cost. The objective of this study was to compare liver stiffness values between dogs with closed EHPSS and those with multiple acquired portosystemic shunts (MAPSS) after gradual surgical attenuation and to assess whether shear wave elastography could be used to determine EHPSS closure. As a secondary objective, measurements obtained from both intercostal and subxiphoidal views were compared. Mean values for the average, median, and maximum two-dimensional shear wave velocities (2D SWV) for the closed EHPSS were 2.88 +/-0.11 m/s; 2.83 +/-0.11 m/s; and 3.75 +/-0.16 m/s, respectively. In the MAPSS dogs, mean values for the average, median, and maximum 2D SWV were 2.77 +/- 0.17 m/s; 2.71 +/- 0.17 m/s; and 3.66 +/-0.24 m/s, respectively. No significant differences in 2D SWV were present between dogs with closed EHPSS and those with MAPSS (= 0.33;= 0.33;= 0.42, respectively). When assessing potential differences between intercostal and subxiphoidal 2D SWV measurements, no effect was observed for the average and median 2D SWV (= 0.06;= 0.07, respectively). Yet, a significant difference was identified for the maximum 2D SWV between intercostal 4.00 +/-0.20 m/s and subxiphoidal 3.41 +/-0.17 m/s measurements (= 0.02). The relevance of this finding is uncertain as many other studies about liver elastography only report mean and not maximum values.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36225793/