AbstractBackground: Chronic insult caused by viral infection, autoimmune disease, alcohol and other toxins can damage the liver parenchyma and ultimately lead to liver fibrosis and cirrhosis. Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse (ARFI) elastography is emerging as a valuable tool in the detection and grading of fibrosis in liver.
Materials and Methods: It is a prospective comparative study performed in 36 patients between December 2016 and March 2018 who presented with deranged liver function test and referred for ultrasonography, ARFI elastography of liver followed by liver biopsy. The findings of Elastography were correlated with histopathology.
Results: When compared with histopathology ARFI had a sensitivity of 82%, specificity of 85%, positive predictive value of 90% and negative predictive value of 75% in detecting liver fibrosis when we used optimum cut values of ARFI.
Conclusion: ARFI elastography is a valuable tool in non-invasively detecting liver fibrosis and can be included as part of routine ultrasonic examination protocol of liver. ARFI technology allows the quantification of liver fibrosis and can be effectively used to stage fibrosis. Hence ARFI can be used as an alternative to liver biopsy and it might substitute liver biopsy in future.
