Comparison of the SonoSite and Acuson 128/XP10 ultrasound machines in the 'bed-side' assessment of the post liver transplant patient.

Hepatic artery thrombosis after liver transplant is associated with biliary sepsis and irretrievable loss of the graft. Early identification of hepatic artery thrombosis, using a 'high-specification' ultrasound machine incorporating spectral Doppler, is crucial to patient management in the postoperative period with portable ultrasound as the first line of investigation for evaluation of the hepatic artery. We evaluated the efficacy of the SonoSite portable ultrasound machine, which uses power Doppler only, in the evaluation of the post transplant hepatic artery. An Acuson 128/XP10 ultrasound machine was used as the comparison 'reference-standard' with identification of the hepatic artery by both colour and spectral Doppler trace. The SonoSite accurately identified the hepatic artery in 88.4% of patients with power Doppler. The SonoSite was easier to transport and manage at the bedside leading to considerable time saving. In 11.6% of patients a repeat ultrasound using the 'reference-standard' machine would be necessary.

[1]  A. Tzakis,et al.  Cholangiographic findings in hepatic artery occlusion after liver transplantation. , 1987, AJR. American journal of roentgenology.

[2]  I. Sproat,et al.  Hepatic artery thrombosis after liver transplantation: temporal accuracy of diagnosis with duplex US and the syndrome of impending thrombosis. , 1996, Radiology.

[3]  B. Koneru,et al.  Hepatic bilomas due to hepatic artery thrombosis in liver transplant recipients: percutaneous drainage and clinical outcome. , 1990, Radiology.

[4]  F. Weber,et al.  Late hepatic artery thrombosis in liver allograft recipients is associated with intrahepatic biliary necrosis. , 1996, Transplantation.

[5]  G. Dodd,et al.  Hepatic artery stenosis and thrombosis in transplant recipients: Doppler diagnosis with resistive index and systolic acceleration time. , 1994, Radiology.

[6]  D. V. van Thiel,et al.  Diagnostic and interventional radiology in liver transplantation. , 1988, Gastroenterology clinics of North America.

[7]  S. Olliff,et al.  Duplex Doppler detection of hepatic artery thrombosis following liver transplantation. , 1993, Clinical radiology.

[8]  T. Starzl,et al.  Hepatic artery thrombosis after liver transplantation: radiologic evaluation. , 1986, AJR. American journal of roentgenology.

[9]  R. Stratta,et al.  Vascular complications after orthotopic liver transplantation. , 1991, American journal of surgery.

[10]  T. Starzl,et al.  CLINICAL PRESENTATION OF HEPATIC ARTERY THROMBOSIS AFTER LIVER TRANSPLANTATION IN THE CYCLOSPORINE ERA , 1985, Transplantation.

[11]  K. Scanlan,et al.  Reversed or absent hepatic arterial diastolic flow in liver transplants shown by duplex sonography: a poor predictor of subsequent hepatic artery thrombosis. , 1992, AJR. American journal of roentgenology.

[12]  T. Kok,et al.  Doppler ultrasound of the hepatic artery and vein performed daily in the first two weeks after orthotopic liver transplantation. Useful for the diagnosis of acute rejection? , 1996, Investigative radiology.

[13]  T. Kok,et al.  Routine Doppler ultrasound for the detection of clinically unsuspected vascular complications in the early postoperative phase after orthotopic liver transplantation , 1998, Transplant international : official journal of the European Society for Organ Transplantation.