Quantification of Hemodynamic Changes in Chronic Liver Disease: Correlation of Perfusion-CT Data with Histopathologic Staging of Fibrosis

Rationale and Objectives To noninvasively estimate the severity of liver fibrosis using perfusion-CT (PCT)-based quantification of dual liver blood supply prior to liver transplantation or liver resections and to correlate results with histological grading of fibrosis stages and AST-platelet ratio index. Materials and methods Institutional review board approved this retrospective study. We analysed 41 consecutive patients (19 classified as Child-Pugh A, 17 as Child-Pugh B, and 5 as Child-Pugh C; MELD score ranged from 7 to 28) who underwent PCT prior to liver transplantation/liver resections between 2013 and 2016. The examination protocol included a scan time of 40 s, 80 kV, 100/120 mAs. Arterial liver perfusion, portal-venous perfusion and hepatic perfusion index (HPI) were registered in liver parenchyma by three readers. Fibrosis was histological graded according to Ishak scoring system as liver fibrosis (F3, n  = 10), incomplete liver cirrhosis (F5, n  = 5), and complete liver cirrhosis (F6, n  = 26). Results Portal-venous perfusion was significantly higher in liver fibrosis (F3 69.5±23.7 ml/100 ml/min) compared to incomplete liver cirrhosis (F5, 52.9±25.7 ml/100 ml/min) and complete liver cirrhosis (F6, 46.4±24.8 ml/100 ml/min (range 6.3–112.0 ml/100 ml/min; F = 15, p p p  = 0.15). PCT parameters as well as histological fibrosis grading did neither correlate with laboratory findings including AST-platelet ratio index and MELD-Score, nor with Child-Pugh-Score. Conclusion Quantitative data from perfusion-CT can be used to differentiate between liver fibrosis (F3) and liver cirrhosis (F5/F6).