Impact of Breath Holding on Spleen Stiffness Measured by 100 Hz Vibration Controlled Transient Elastography

BACKGROUNDS AND AIMS: Ultrasound-based spleen stiffness measurement (SSM) is a valid non-invasive tool to assess portal hypertension (PH) in chronic liver disease. Whereas the role of the respiratory phase during liver stiffness measurements is established, no study has specifically addressed how respiration influences SSM by transient elastography. AIMS: To evaluate the influence of respiration on SSM assessed with FibroScan 630 (Echosens, Paris, France). METHODS: Eighty-three patients with chronic liver disease of different aetiologies underwent SSM using vibration-controlled transient elastography (VCTE). RESULTS: SSM acquired during a normal respiratory cycle showed better diagnostic accuracy than measurements obtained during breath-hold after deep inspiration (AUROC 0.835 [95% CI 0.743-0.928] vs. 0.798 [95% CI 0.697-0.899]). CONCLUSION: SSM by VCTE should be performed during quiet breathing, as it showed good diagnostic accuracy for predicting the presence of oesophageal varices (OV) in patients with chronic liver disease.