Document Detail


Esophageal varices in cirrhotic patients: evaluation with liver CT.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  17179356     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of routine helical liver CT in the detection and grading of esophageal varices in cirrhotic patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 67 consecutive cirrhotic patients who underwent both upper endoscopy and helical liver CT within a 4-week interval were evaluated. The CT protocol included unenhanced, arterial, and portal phases with a collimation of 7-7.5 mm. Two blinded abdominal imagers (6 and 7 years' experience) retrospectively interpreted all CT images to detect the presence of esophageal varices on a 5-point confidence scale and measure the largest varix identified. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed, and the correlation between CT measurements and endoscopic grading, the reference standard, was assessed. RESULTS: The variceal detection rates for the observers was 92% (11/12) and 92% (11/12) for large (i.e., clinically significant) varices, 53% (16/30) and 60% (18/30) for small varices, and 64% (27/42) and 69% (29/42) for all varices. The area under the ROC curve for the detection of esophageal varices of any size was 0.77 (observer 1) and 0.80 (observer 2). CT variceal grading showed a strong correlation with endoscopic grading for both observers (p < or = 0.001). Using a variceal diameter threshold of 3 mm on CT, sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy for distinguishing large esophageal varices from small or no varices were 92% (11/12), 84% (46/55), and 85% (57/67), respectively, for both observers. CONCLUSION: Liver CT is useful for the detection and grading of esophageal varices. A diameter of 3 mm may be an appropriate screening threshold for large clinically significant varices.
Authors:
Young Jun Kim; Steven S Raman; Nam C Yu; Katherine J To'o; Rome Jutabha; David S K Lu
Related Documents :
22183076 - Tissue-velocity magnetic resonance imaging and tissue doppler imaging to assess regiona...
22268176 - Inline directionally independent peak velocity evaluation reduces error in peak antegra...
22197406 - Perfusion-ct assessment of blood-brain barrier permeability in patients with aneurysmal...
17965956 - Cystine calculi: correlation of ct-visible structure, ct number, and stone morphology w...
19529656 - Multi-frequency resonator based on dual-band s-shaped left-handed material.
7972756 - Evaluation of the injured cervical spine: comparison of conventional and storage phosph...
Publication Detail:
Type:  Journal Article    
Journal Detail:
Title:  AJR. American journal of roentgenology     Volume:  188     ISSN:  1546-3141     ISO Abbreviation:  AJR Am J Roentgenol     Publication Date:  2007 Jan 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2006-12-20     Completed Date:  2007-01-09     Revised Date:  2008-02-15    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  7708173     Medline TA:  AJR Am J Roentgenol     Country:  United States    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  139-44     Citation Subset:  AIM; IM    
Affiliation:
Department of Radiological Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, 10833 Le Conte Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90095-1721, USA.
Export Citation:
APA/MLA Format     Download EndNote     Download BibTex
MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Adult
Aged
Esophageal and Gastric Varices / complications,  radiography*
Female
Humans
Liver / radiography*
Liver Cirrhosis / complications,  radiography*
Male
Middle Aged
Radiographic Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / methods*
Reproducibility of Results
Retrospective Studies
Sensitivity and Specificity
Tomography, X-Ray Computed / methods*

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


Previous Document:  Combined CT colonography and 18F-FDG PET of colon polyps: potential technique for selective detectio...
Next Document:  Dynamic CT for detecting small hepatocellular carcinoma: usefulness of delayed phase imaging.