Variability of the area under the receiver operating characteristic curves in the diagnostic evaluation of liver fibrosis markers: impact of biopsy length and fragmentation

Role of radiomics in staging liver fibrosis: a meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Fibrosis has important pathoetiological and prognostic roles in chronic liver disease. This study evaluates the role of radiomics in staging liver fibrosis.

METHOD

After literature search in electronic databases (Embase, Ovid, Science Direct, Springer, and Web of Science), studies were selected by following precise eligibility criteria. The quality of included studies was assessed, and meta-analyses were performed to achieve pooled estimates of area under receiver-operator curve (AUROC), accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of radiomics in staging liver fibrosis compared to histopathology.

RESULTS

Fifteen studies (3718 patients; age 47 years [95% confidence interval (CI): 42, 53]; 69% [95% CI: 65, 73] males) were included. AUROC values of radiomics for detecting significant fibrosis (F2-4), advanced fibrosis (F3-4), and cirrhosis (F4) were 0.91 [95%CI: 0.89, 0.94], 0.92 [95%CI: 0.90, 0.95], and 0.94 [95%CI: 0.93, 0.96] in training cohorts and 0.89 [95%CI: 0.83, 0.91], 0.89 [95%CI: 0.83, 0.94], and 0.93 [95%CI: 0.91, 0.95] in validation cohorts, respectively. For diagnosing significant fibrosis, advanced fibrosis, and cirrhosis the sensitivity of radiomics was 84.0% [95%CI: 76.1, 91.9], 86.9% [95%CI: 76.8, 97.0], and 92.7% [95%CI: 89.7, 95.7] in training cohorts, and 75.6% [95%CI: 67.7, 83.5], 80.0% [95%CI: 70.7, 89.3], and 92.0% [95%CI: 87.8, 96.1] in validation cohorts, respectively. Respective specificity was 88.6% [95% CI: 83.0, 94.2], 88.4% [95% CI: 81.9, 94.8], and 91.1% [95% CI: 86.8, 95.5] in training cohorts, and 86.8% [95% CI: 83.3, 90.3], 94.0% [95% CI: 89.5, 98.4], and 88.3% [95% CI: 84.4, 92.2] in validation cohorts. Limitations included use of several methods for feature selection and classification, less availability of studies evaluating a particular radiological modality, lack of a direct comparison between radiology and radiomics, and lack of external validation.

CONCLUSION

Although radiomics offers good diagnostic accuracy in detecting liver fibrosis, its role in clinical practice is not as clear at present due to comparability and validation constraints.

Platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio and absolute monocyte count have prognostic potential in primary myelodysplastic neoplasms

INTRODUCTION

The platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), peripheral blood absolute monocyte count (AMC), and monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR) are considered biomarkers of systemic immune and inflammation response. However, their prognostic potential in patients with myelodysplastic neoplasms (MDS) remains unclear. This study aimed to explore the predictive impact of PLR, MLR, and AMC on MDS outcomes.

METHODS

In total, 334 patients with primary MDS were included between January 2016 and December 2021 and were retrospectively followed up until December 31, 2022. The prognostic significance of PLR, MLR, and AMC was assessed using univariate and multivariate analyses, and predictive models were generated to estimate MDS outcomes. The area under their receiver operating curves was computed to compare the predictive power of these models.

RESULTS

Fifty-one patients had disease progression, and 103 patients died during follow-up. In multivariate analyses, a higher PLR was an adverse independent factor for overall survival (OS) (p = 0.011), whereas a higher AMC indicated shorter progression-free survival (p = 0.003). The prognostic model incorporating PLR, MLR, and AMC with the Revised International Prognostic Scoring System (IPSS-R) risk categorization showed higher performance in predicting OS than the model that only utilized the IPSS-R category.

CONCLUSION

Elevated PLR and increased AMC had independent prognostic value for adverse outcomes in patients with MDS. PLR, MLR, and AMC enhanced the IPSS-R risk categorization for OS prediction in MDS.

Evaluation of the efficacy of Biejia decoction pill combined with entecavir in the treatment of hepatitis B liver fibrosis/cirrhosis by VCTE

The vibration controlled transient elastography (VCTE) technique was used to assess the effectiveness of a Biejia Decoction pill in combination with Entecavir in the treatment of hepatitis B liver fibrosis/cirrhosis. We randomly selected 120 patients to receive entecavir and 119 patients to receive both entecavir and Biejia Decoction Pill, which both with hepatitis B liver fibrosis/cirrhosis visited the Second Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University between January 2019 and February 2022. The observation group got ETV (entecavir) and Biejia Decoction pills, whereas the control group received only standard ETV antiviral medication. Based on the grading of the VCTE detection value (LSM) initially diagnosed for patients with hepatitis B liver fibrosis/cirrhosis, we divided the patients into two subgroups of liver fibrosis and cirrhosis. In addition, patients with liver fibrosis were divided into mild and moderate subgroups according to their VCTE values. Patients were measured for liver hardness after three, six, nine, and twelve months of treatment with VCTE. Biejia Decoction Pill combined with ETV on HBV liver fibrosis/cirrhosis was evaluated by comparing patients' changes in liver hardness and HBV-DNA negative conversion rates before and after treatment in each group at the same baseline. The LSM (liver elasticity value) of the observation group and the control group after treatment was lower than that before treatment, and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.0001); The LSM of the observation group after treatment was significantly lower than that of the control group, and the difference was also statistically significant (P = 0.0005 < 0.05). In the subgroup of liver fibrosis, the number of patients with moderate and severe liver fibrosis who completely reversed liver fibrosis after treatment in the treatment group was far more than that in the control group, and the difference between the two groups was statistically significant (χ2 = 4.82 P = 0.028 < 0.05) 。 When the treatment course was more than 9 months, the negative conversion rate of patients in the observation group reached 87.4%, which was higher than that in the control group (70.8%), and the difference was statistically significant (P = 0.002 < 0.05); After 12 months of treatment, the negative conversion rate of patients in the observation group was as high as 95%, which was significantly higher than 76.67% in the control group (P < 0.001). The degree of liver fibrosis was significantly improved when Biejia Decoction Pill was combined with ETV in patients with liver fibrosis/cirrhosis due to hepatitis B. The virological response rate to HBV-DNA increased with the prolongation of treatment, and the Biejia Decoction Pill assists with entecavir in antiviral therapy.

Diagnostic role of transient elastography in patients with autoimmune liver diseases: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Noninvasive methods have been developed to detect fibrosis in many liver diseases due to the limits of liver biopsy. However, previous studies have focused primarily on chronic viral hepatitis and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. The diagnostic value of transient elastography for autoimmune liver diseases (AILDs) is worth studying.

AIM

To compare the diagnostic accuracy of imaging techniques with serum biomarkers of fibrosis in AILD.

METHODS

The PubMed, Cochrane Library and EMBASE databases were searched. Studies evaluating the efficacy of noninvasive methods in the diagnosis of AILDs [autoimmune hepatitis (AIH), primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC)] were included. The summary area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC), diagnostic odds ratio, sensitivity and specificity were used to assess the accuracy of these noninvasive methods for staging fibrosis.

RESULTS

A total of 60 articles were included in this study, and the number of patients with AIH, PBC and PSC was 1594, 3126 and 501, respectively. The summary AUROC of transient elastography in the diagnosis of significant fibrosis, advanced fibrosis and cirrhosis in patients with AIH were 0.84, 0.88 and 0.90, respectively, while those in patients with PBC were 0.93, 0.93 and 0.91, respectively. The AUROC of cirrhosis for patients with PSC was 0.95. However, other noninvasive indices (aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio index, aspartate aminotransferase/alanine aminotransferase ratio, fibrosis-4 index) had corresponding AUROCs less than 0.80.

CONCLUSION

Transient elastography exerts better diagnostic accuracy in AILD patients, especially in PBC patients. The appropriate cutoff values for staging advanced fibrosis and cirrhosis ranged from 9.6 to 10.7 and 14.4 to 16.9 KPa for PBC patients.

Prospective comparison of transient elastography, MRI and serum scores for grading steatosis and detecting non-alcoholic steatohepatitis in bariatric surgery candidates

Background & Aims

Tools for the non-invasive diagnosis of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) in morbidly obese patients with suspected non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are an unmet clinical need. We prospectively compared the performance of transient elastography, MRI, and 3 serum scores for the diagnosis of NAFLD, grading of steatosis and detection of NASH in bariatric surgery candidates.

Methods

Of 186 patients screened, 152 underwent liver biopsy, which was used as a reference for NAFLD (steatosis [S]>5%), steatosis grading and NASH diagnosis. Biopsies were read by a single expert pathologist. MRI-based proton density fat fraction (MRI-PDFF) was measured in an open-bore, vertical field 1.0T scanner and controlled attenuation parameter (CAP) was measured by transient elastography, using the XL probe. Serum scores (SteatoTest, hepatic steatosis index and fatty liver index) were also calculated.

Results

The applicability of MRI was better than that of FibroScan (98% vs. 79%; p <0.0001). CAP had AUROCs of 0.83, 0.79, 0.73 and 0.69 for S>5%, S>33%, S>66% and NASH, respectively. Transient elastography had an AUROC of 0.80 for significant fibrosis (F0-F1 vs. F2-F3). MRI-PDFF had AUROCs of 0.97, 0.95, 0.92 and 0.84 for S>5%, S>33%, S>66% and NASH, respectively. When compared head-to-head in the 97 patients with all valid tests available, MRI-PDFF outperformed CAP for grading steatosis (S>33%, AUROC 0.97 vs. 0.78; p <0.0003 and S>66%, AUROC 0.93 vs. 0.75; p = 0.0015) and diagnosing NASH (AUROC 0.82 vs. 0.68; p = 0.0056). When compared in "intention to diagnose" analysis, MRI-PDFF outperformed CAP, hepatic steatosis index and fatty liver index for grading steatosis (S>5%, S>33% and S>66%).

Conclusion

MRI-PDFF outperforms CAP for diagnosing NAFLD, grading steatosis and excluding NASH in morbidly obese patients undergoing bariatric surgery.

Lay summary

Non-invasive tests for detecting fatty liver and steatohepatitis, the active form of the disease, have not been well studied in obese patients who are candidates for bariatric surgery. The most popular tests for this purpose are Fibroscan, which can be used to measure the controlled attenuation parameter (CAP), and magnetic resonance imaging, which can be used to measure the proton density fat fraction (MRI-PDFF). We found that, when taking liver biopsy as a reference, MRI-PDFF performed better than CAP for detecting and grading fatty liver as well as excluding steatohepatitis in morbidly obese patients undergoing bariatric surgery.

Diagnostic Performance of Serum Asialo-α1-acid Glycoprotein for Advanced Liver Fibrosis or Cirrhosis in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis B or Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Background/Aims

The utility of asialo-α1-acid glycoprotein (AsAGP) for assessing the fibrotic burden is unknown. This study examined the diagnostic performance of the AsAGP level for advanced liver fibrosis or cirrhosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) or nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

Methods

From July to December 2018, 48 patients with CHB and 75 with NAFLD were recruited prospectively. Transient elastography was used as the reference standard for liver fibrosis, and the cutoff liver stiffness values were defined as 10.0 kilopascal (kPa) for ≥F3 and 12.0 kPa for F4 in CHB patients, and 9.0 kPa for ≥F3 and 11.8 kPa for F4 in NAFLD patients.

Results

To predict stage ≥F3 and F4 fibrosis, the areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves of the AsAGP level in patients with CHB were 0.788 (95% CI 0.647-0.930; p=0.005) and 0.825 (95% CI 0.674-0.976; p=0.004), respectively. The cutoff AsAGP levels in patients with CHB that maximized the sum of the sensitivity and specificity values were 1.31 (sensitivity 100.0%, specificity 52.6%) and 1.55 (sensitivity 75.0%, specificity 80.0%), respectively. In contrast, the AsAGP level was similar regardless of the fibrosis stage in patients with NAFLD (all p>0.05 between the stages).

Conclusions

The AsAGP level showed acceptable diagnostic accuracy in predicting advanced liver fibrosis and cirrhosis in patients with CHB but not in those with NAFLD. Further studies will be needed to validate the diagnostic performance of the AsAGP level in patients with NALFD.

Limitations of non-invasive tests for assessment of liver fibrosis

The diagnostic assessment of liver injury is an important step in the management of patients with chronic liver disease (CLD). Although liver biopsy is the reference standard for the assessment of necroinflammation and fibrosis, the inherent limitations of an invasive procedure, and need for repeat sampling, have led to the development of several non-invasive tests (NITs) as alternatives to liver biopsy. Such non-invasive approaches mostly include biological (serum biomarker algorithms) or physical (imaging assessment of tissue stiffness) assessments. However, currently available NITs have several limitations, such as variability, inadequate accuracy and risk factors for error, while the development of a newer generation of biomarkers for fibrosis may be limited by the sampling error inherent to the reference standard. Many of the current NITs were initially developed to diagnose significant fibrosis in chronic hepatitis C, subsequently refined for the diagnosis of advanced fibrosis in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and further adapted for prognostication in CLD. An important consideration is that despite their increased use in clinical practice, these NITs were not designed to reflect the dynamic process of fibrogenesis, differentiate between adjacent disease stages, diagnose non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, or follow longitudinal changes in fibrosis or disease activity caused by natural history or therapeutic intervention. Understanding the strengths and limitations of these NITs will allow for more judicious interpretation in the clinical context, where NITs should be viewed as complementary to, rather than as a replacement for, liver biopsy.

Assessment of Liver Fibrosis With Elastography Point Quantification vs Other Noninvasive Methods

BACKGROUND & AIMS

Elastography point quantification (ElastPQ) is a non-invasive method for assessing liver fibrosis based on liver stiffness. We evaluated the accuracy of ElastPQ for the staging of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic liver disease (CLD) compared with aspartate transaminase to platelet ratio index, fibrosis-4 index, and transient elastography (TE), using liver biopsy as reference standard.

METHODS

We performed a retrospective study of 406 patients with CLD of any etiology who underwent liver biopsy analysis from September 2012 through June 2017 at a clinic in Bologna, Italy. We obtained liver stiffness measurements, made by ElastPQ and TE, for 361 patients. Liver fibrosis stage was assessed by the METAVIR scoring system. Areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) were used to assess the diagnostic performance of ElastPQ.

RESULTS

ElastPQ values correlated with histologic detection of fibrosis (r = 0.718; P < .001). The AUROC values were 0.856 for detection of significant fibrosis (F≥2), 0.951 for advanced fibrosis (F≥3), and 0.965 for cirrhosis. The best cut-off values identified for classifying patients with F≥2, F≥3, or cirrhosis were 6.0 kPa, 6.2 kPa, and 9.5 kPa, respectively: these were lower than those for TE. Comparison of ElastPQ with TE data resulted in superimposable diagnostic accuracy of both methods for each stage of liver fibrosis. Both elastography techniques performed better than aspartate transaminase to platelet ratio index or fibrosis-4 index scores (P < .05 for all AUROC comparisons).

CONCLUSIONS

ElastPQ has good to excellent performance for the non-invasive staging of liver fibrosis in patients with CLD. ElastPQ identified patients with fibrosis or cirrhosis with levels of accuracy that were not inferior to those of TE, and outperformed serum fibrosis indexes in identifying each stage of liver fibrosis.

Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse Elastography with APRI and FIB-4 to Identify Significant Liver Fibrosis in Chronic Hepatitis B Patients

INTRODUCTION AND AIM

In chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients with equivocal indication for antiviral therapy, therapeutic decision currently depends on histopathology of the liver. We aimed to evaluate if acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) in conjunction with aspartate transaminase to platelet ratio index (APRI) and fibrosis-4 (FIB-4) score could replace liver biopsy to indicate treatment for CHB.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We prospectively enrolled 101 clinically non-cirrhotic patients whose serum alanine aminotransferase was mildly elevated (1-2 folds above the upper normal limit) despite a high viral load (HBV DNA &gt; 2,000 IU/mL). All participants underwent liver biopsy, and measurement of ARFI, APRI and FIB-4. The ability of the markers to distinguish fibrosis ≥ METAVIR F2 was evaluated.

RESULTS

According to histopathology, liver fibrosis was METAVIR F0 in 2 (2.0%), F1 in 43 (42.6%), F2 in 34 (33.7%), F3 in 16 (15.8%), and F4 in 6 (5.9%) patients, and was correlated with ARFI (p = 0.0001), APRI (p = 0.012), and FIB-4 (p = 0.004). The six patients with cirrhosis were included for analysis, and received antiviral therapy. The C statistics of ARFI, APRI, and FIB-4 for fibrosis ≥ F2 were 0.70 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.59-0.80), 0.62 (95% CI, 0.51-0.73), and 0.64 (0.53- 0.75), respectively. The cut-off values for 95% sensitivity and 95% specificity to identify significant fibrosis were 0.97 m/sec and 1.36 m/sec for ARFI, 0.36 and 1.0 for APRI, 0.63 and 2.22 for FIB-4, respectively. Using a combination of these 3 indices, 44 patients (43.6%) could be spared a liver biopsy procedure.

CONCLUSIONS

A combination of ARFI, APRI, and FIB-4 may spare some CHB patients with equivocal indication for antiviral treatment a liver biopsy.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: biomarkers as diagnostic tools for liver damage assessment in adult patients from Argentina

BACKGROUND

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease whose prevalence has been increasing constantly and linked to the global obesity epidemic. The NAFLD histologic spectrum ranges from simple steatosis to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which can progress to cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Liver biopsy is the only reliable means to diagnose and stage NASH, but its invasive nature limits its use. Therefore, the prediction of hepatic injury by means of the development of new noninvasive tests represents a growing medical need. Our aim was to evaluate matrix deposition and cell-death markers, which correlate with liver injury in an NAFLD patient cohort.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Liver biopsies and serum from 34 NAFLD adult patients were analyzed. Histological parameters were evaluated. Matrix deposition [hyaluronic acid (HA) and tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor-1 (TIMP-1)] and cell-death markers [cytokeratin-18 (M65) and caspase-cleaved cytokeratin-18 (M30)] were measured in serum samples.

RESULTS

HA showed an association with fibrosis severity (P=0.03) and M30 with steatosis (P=0.013), inflammation (P=0.004), and fibrosis severity (P=0.04). In contrast, TIMP-1 and M65 showed no association with any histological parameter of liver injury. The evaluation of diagnostic accuracy showed good performance as less invasive markers of significant fibrosis of both HA (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve: 0.928) and M30 (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve: 0.848).

CONCLUSION

Biomarkers are essential tools that may provide a quick and accurate diagnosis for patients with life-threatening NAFLD and NASH. HA and M30, together or determined sequentially, have been found to be straightforward tests that may be sufficient to predict significant fibrosis even in a primary care center of an underdeveloped country.

Factors Influencing the Diagnostic Accuracy of Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse Elastography in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis B

Background/Aims

To determine factors predictive of discordance in staging liver fibrosis using liver biopsy (LB) and acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) elastography in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB).

Methods

Consecutive patients with CHB who underwent LB and ARFI elastography on the same day from November 2010 to March 2013 were prospectively recruited from three tertiary hospitals.

Results

We analyzed 105 patients (median age of 47 years). The F0–1, F2, F3, and F4 fibrosis stages were identified in 27 (25.7%), 27 (25.7%), 21 (20.0%), and 30 (28.6%) patients, respectively. The areas under the receiver operating characteristics curves for ARFI elastography in assessing ≥F2, ≥F3, and F4 was 0.814, 0.848, and 0.752, respectively. The discordance of at least one stage between LB and ARFI was observed in 68 patients (64.8%) and of at least two stages in 16 patients (15.2%). In a multivariate analysis, advanced fibrosis stage (F3–4) was the only factor that was negatively correlated with one-stage discordance (p=0.042). Moreover, advanced fibrosis stage was negatively (p=0.016) correlated and body mass index (BMI) was positively (p=0.006) correlated with two-stage discordance.

Conclusions

Advanced fibrosis stage (F3–4) was a predictor of nondiscordance between LB and ARFI elastography; BMI also influenced the accuracy of ARFI elastography.

Diagnostic performance of FibroTest, SteatoTest and ActiTest in patients with NAFLD using the SAF score as histological reference

BACKGROUND

Blood tests of liver injury are less well validated in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) than in patients with chronic viral hepatitis.

AIMS

To improve the validation of three blood tests used in NAFLD patients, FibroTest for fibrosis staging, SteatoTest for steatosis grading and ActiTest for inflammation activity grading.

METHODS

We pre-included new NAFLD patients with biopsy and blood tests from a single-centre cohort (FibroFrance) and from the multicentre FLIP consortium. Contemporaneous biopsies were blindly assessed using the new steatosis, activity and fibrosis (SAF) score, which provides a reliable and reproducible diagnosis and grading/staging of the three elementary features of NAFLD (steatosis, inflammatory activity) and fibrosis with reduced interobserver variability. We used nonbinary-ROC (NonBinAUROC) as the main endpoint to prevent spectrum effect and multiple testing.

RESULTS

A total of 600 patients with reliable tests and biopsies were included. The mean NonBinAUROCs (95% CI) of tests were all significant (P < 0.0001): 0.878 (0.864-0.892) for FibroTest and fibrosis stages, 0.846 (0.830-0.862) for ActiTest and activity grades, and 0.822 (0.804-0.840) for SteatoTest and steatosis grades. FibroTest had a higher NonBinAUROC than BARD (0.836; 0.820-0.852; P = 0.0001), FIB4 (0.845; 0.829-0.861; P = 0.007) but not significantly different than the NAFLD score (0.866; 0.850-0.882; P = 0.26). FibroTest had a significant difference in median values between adjacent stage F2 and stage F1 contrarily to BARD, FIB4 and NAFLD scores (Bonferroni test P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

In patients with NAFLD, SteatoTest, ActiTest and FibroTest are non-invasive tests that offer an alternative to biopsy, and they correlate with the simple grading/staging of the SAF scoring system across the three elementary features of NAFLD: steatosis, inflammatory activity and fibrosis.

Combined acoustic radiation force impulse, aminotransferase to platelet ratio index and Forns index assessment for hepatic fibrosis grading in hepatitis B

AIM: To investigate the combined diagnostic accuracy of acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI), aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio index (APRI) and Forns index for a non-invasive assessment of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB).

METHODS: In this prospective study, 206 patients had CHB with liver fibrosis stages F0-F4 classified by METAVIR and 40 were healthy volunteers were measured by ARFI, APRI and Forns index separately or combined as indicated.

RESULTS: ARFI, APRI or Forns index demonstrated a significant correlation with the histological stage (all P < 0.001). According to the AUROC of ARFI and APRI for evaluating fibrotic stages more than F2, ARFI showed an enhanced diagnostic accuracy than APRI (P < 0.05). The combined measurement of ARFI and APRI exhibited better accuracy than ARFI alone when evaluating ≥ F2 fibrotic stage (Z = 2.77, P = 0.006). Combination of ARFI, APRI and Forns index did not obviously improve the diagnostic accuracy compared to the combination of ARFI and APRI (Z = 0.958, P = 0.338).

CONCLUSION: ARFI + APRI showed enhanced diagnostic accuracy than ARFI or APRI alone for significant liver fibrosis and ARFI + APRI + Forns index shows the same effect with ARFI + APRI.

Combining routine markers improves the accuracy of transient elastography for hepatitis B cirrhosis detection

BACKGROUND AND AIM

Vibration Controlled Transient Elastography (VCTE) is a non-invasive test for liver fibrosis and cirrhosis but may be inaccurate in some patients, especially in those with chronic hepatitis B. This study aims at improving the accuracy of VCTE in cirrhosis detection by combining ultrasound and routine blood parameters.

METHODS

Hepatitis B patients with liver biopsies samples ≥20mm underwent VCTE, ultrasound and blood tests, and were divided into training set (n=170) and validation set (n=75).

RESULTS

An algorithm consisting of VCTE, international normalization ratio (INR), ultrasonic hepatic vessel and platelet count (CIR-4) and a VCTE-based cirrhosis six-index score (CIR-6) comprised VCTE, INR, platelet, albumin, ultrasonic hepatic vessel and liver parenchyma were derived. In training set, area under receiver operating characteristics curve of CIR-6 and CIR-4 to detect cirrhosis was 0.946 and 0.945, respectively, which was superior to that of VCTE 0.907. CIR-4 could save more liver biopsies. In validation set, CIR-6 detected cirrhosis with accuracy similar to that in training set. However, the sensitivity of CIR-4 and VCTE in validation set lowered to 0.538 and 0.846, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Combining routine markers improve the accuracy of VCTE for cirrhosis detection in hepatitis B patients. CIR-6 may be more valuable.

Low Serum Potassium Levels Associated with Disease Severity in Children with Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

PURPOSE

Recent studies have suggested that decreased serum potassium level may contribute to various metabolic disorders in adult patients including nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). We aimed to study the correlation between serum potassium levels and the histologic severity of NAFLD in children.

METHODS

Pediatric patients with biopsy-proven NAFLD were included in this study. Demographic, clinical, and histopathological data were obtained. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to assess whether potassium levels are associated with the presence of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) or fibrosis after adjusting for possible confounders. A p-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS

Among 125 biopsies, 49.6% (62) had evidence of NASH while 66.4% (83) had some degree of fibrosis (stage 1-3). Mean serum potassium was significantly lower in NASH group as compared to non-NASH group (4.4±0.42 mmoL/L vs. 4.8±0.21, p<0.001). Higher potassium level had negative correlation with presence of steatosis, ballooning, lobular inflammation, fibrosis and NAFLD activity score (p<0.05). On multivariable analysis and after adjusting for the metabolic syndrome and insulin resistance, higher potassium level was significantly associated with lower likelihood of having a histological diagnosis of NASH on biopsy (odds ratio [OR], 0.12; 95% confidence interval [95% CI], 0.05-0.28; p<0.001). Similarly, the likelihood of having fibrosis decreases by 76% for every 0.5 mmoL/L increase in potassium (OR ,0.24; 95% CI, 0.11-0.54; p<0.001).

CONCLUSION

Our study shows an inverse relationship between serum potassium levels and the presence of aggressive disease (NASH and fibrosis) in children with NAFLD.

A non-invasive prediction model for non-alcoholic steatohepatitis in paediatric patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

BACKGROUND

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease encompasses a spectrum of diseases that range from simple steatosis to the aggressive form of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis. Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis is currently diagnosed through liver biopsy.

AIM

To develop a non-invasive predictive model of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis in children with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

METHODS

Anthropometric, laboratory, and histologic data were obtained in a cohort of children with biopsy-proven non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was employed to create a nomogram predicting the risk of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis. Internal validation was performed by bootstrapping.

RESULTS

Three hundred and two children were included in this analysis with a mean age of 12.3 ± 3.1 years, a mean body mass index percentile of 94.3 ± 6.9, and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis was present in 67%. Following stepwise variable selection, total cholesterol, waist circumference percentile, and total bilirubin were included as variables in the model, with good discrimination with an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.737.

CONCLUSIONS

A nomogram was constructed with reasonable accuracy that can predict the risk of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis in children with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. If validated externally, this tool could be utilized as a non-invasive method to diagnose non-alcoholic steatohepatitis in children with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

Noninvasive biomarkers in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: Current status and a glimpse of the future

The development of non invasive biomarkers of disease has become a major focus of interest in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The large prevalence of the disease and the invasive nature of the investigation means that screening with liver biopsy is impractical. In addition to screening, the differentiation of those with simple steatosis vs steatohepatitis and fibrosis is clinically important as the prognosis of each differs. Serum biomarkers may be a combination of simple markers derived from large data sets or direct markers of disease activity. Serum markers of inflammation, apoptosis and oxidative stress in addition to fibrosis have been extensively studied in patients with NAFLD. Other techniques such as transient elastography, magnetic resonance elastography and acoustic radiation force imaging are becoming more established as noninvasive methods of detecting fibrosis in a variety of chronic liver conditions in addition to NAFLD. Newer high throughput methods such as proteomics and glycomics allow the nonhypothesis-driven identification of novel markers and may also potentially contribute to our understanding of the pathogenesis of the condition. This review addresses some of the methodological issues which need to be considered in the search for the ideal biomarker. It is likely that a combination of serum biomarkers and techniques such as transient elastography may provide the optimal diagnostic discrimination however this remains to be proven in large studies.

The development of the pediatric NAFLD fibrosis score (PNFS) to predict the presence of advanced fibrosis in children with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

BACKGROUND

Noninvasive hepatic fibrosis scores that predict the presence of advanced fibrosis have been developed and validated in adult patients with NAFLD. The aims of our study were to assess the utility of commonly used adult fibrosis scores in pediatric NAFLD and to develop a pediatric specific fibrosis score that can predict advanced fibrosis.

METHODS

Consecutive children with biopsy-proven NAFLD were included. Fibrosis was determined by an experienced pathologist (F0-4). Advanced fibrosis was defined as fibrosis stage ≥ 3. The following adult fibrosis scores were calculated for each child: AST/ALT ratio, AST/platelet ratio index (APRI), NAFLD fibrosis score (NFS), and FIB-4 Index. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed to build a new pediatric model for predicting advanced fibrosis.

RESULTS

Our cohort consisted of 242 children with a mean age of 12.4 ± 3.1 years and 63% were female. 36 (15%) subjects had advanced fibrosis. APRI and FIB-4 were higher in patients with advanced fibrosis compared to those with fibrosis stage 0-2; however, AST/ALT ratio and NFS were not different between the two groups. We used our data to develop a new model to predict advanced fibrosis which included: ALT, alkaline phosphatase, platelet counts and GGT. The multivariable logistic regression model (z) was defined as follows: z = 1.1+(0.34*sqrt(ALT))+(0.002*alkaline phosphatase) - (1.1*log(platelets) - (0.02*GGT). This value was then converted into a probability distribution (p) with a value between 0 to 100 by the following formula: p = 100 × exp(z)/[1+exp(z)]. The AUCROC for this model was 0.74 (95% CI: 0.66, 0.82). This was found to be significantly better than APRI, NAFLD Fibrosis Score and FIB-4 Index.

CONCLUSION

Noninvasive hepatic fibrosis scores developed in adults had poor performance in diagnosing advanced fibrosis in children with NAFLD. We developed a new pediatric NAFLD fibrosis score with improved performance characteristics.

Non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (non-HDL-C) levels in children with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is associated with increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk in children. Non-high density lipoprotein-cholesterol (non-HDL-C) has been shown to be a good predictor of cardiovascular events. Recent data in adults found non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) to be associated with significantly higher levels of non–HDL-C than simple steatosis, suggestive it might be used as a non-invasive tool to diagnose NASH. The goal of our study was to assess non-HDL-C levels in children with NAFLD. Our cohort consisted of pediatric patients with biopsy-proven NAFLD. Anthropometric, laboratory, and histologic data were obtained on all patients. Univariable analysis was performed to assess differences in clinical characteristics between groups. Spearman rank correlation coefficients were calculated to assess the correlation between non-HDL-C levels and clinical variables. ANCOVA was used to adjust for possible confounders. 302 subjects with NAFLD were included in our study; 203 with NASH and 99 without NASH. Subjects with NASH had significantly higher non-HDL-C levels than those without (p = 0.004). Histologic features of NASH, including ballooning, inflammation, and fibrosis were found to be weakly correlated with non-HDL-C levels, (p < 0.05 for all). After adjusting for the presence of metabolic syndrome (MetS), ALT, and GGT, the association between non-HDL-C and NASH was not significant (p = 0.66). In Conclusion, non-HDL-C levels are higher in children with NASH than those with simple steatosis, suggesting increased CVD risk. This may be a reflection of the higher prevalence of MetS. Non-HDL-C had a positive association with histologic features of NASH.

Serum bilirubin level is inversely associated with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis in children

OBJECTIVES

Oxidative stress has been implicated in the development of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and progression to the more severe form, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), in children. We aimed to study the clinical correlation between bilirubin, a potent endogenous antioxidant with cytoprotective properties, and histopathological findings in pediatric patients with NAFLD.

METHODS

We included consecutive children with biopsy-proven NAFLD and obtained demographic, clinical, and histopathological data. We performed logistic regression analysis to assess the clinical factors associated with the histological features of NASH or fibrosis.

RESULTS

From a total of 302 biopsies, 67% (203) had evidence of NASH, whereas 64.2% had some degree of fibrosis (stage 1 in 51%, stage 2 in 6.3%, and stage 3 in 6.6%). Mean total bilirubin was significantly lower in the NASH group compared with the non-NASH group (0.65 ± 0.24 vs 0.73 ± 0.22 mg/dL, P = 0.007). Higher total bilirubin levels were negatively correlated with the presence of steatosis and the NAFLD activity score (P < 0.05), whereas a trend in that direction was observed for presence of fibrosis and inflammation (P = 0.051). On multivariable analysis, higher bilirubin levels were significantly associated with a decreased likelihood of a histological diagnosis of NASH on biopsy (odds ratio 0.29, 95% CI 0.10-0.85, P = 0.024).

CONCLUSIONS

In children with NAFLD, there is an inverse relation between serum bilirubin levels and the presence of NASH on biopsy. This may be secondary to the antioxidant effect of bilirubin.

Role of fibroscan and APRI in detection of liver fibrosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIMS

Fibroscan and APRI are promising noninvasive alternatives to liver biopsy for detecting hepatic fibrosis. However, their overall test performance in various settings remains questionable. The aim of our study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of diagnostic accuracy studies comparing fibroscan and APRI with liver biopsy for hepatic fibrosis.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

Electronic and manual bibliographic searches to identify potential studies were performed. Selection of studies was based on reported accuracy of fibroscan and APRI compared with liver biopsy. Data extraction was performed independently by two reviewers. Meta-analysis combined the sensitivities, specificities, and likelihood ratios of individual studies. Extent and reasons for heterogeneity were assessed.

RESULTS

23 studies for fibroscan and 20 studies for APRI in full publication were identified. For patients with stage IV fibrosis (cirrhosis), the pooled estimates for sensitivity of fibroscan were 83.4% (95% confidence interval [CI], 71.7-95.0%) and specificity 92.4% (95% CI, 85.6-99.2%). For patients with stage IV fibrosis (cirrhosis), the pooled estimates for sensitivity of APRI at cutoff point of 1.5 were 66.5% (95% CI, 25.0-100%) and specificity 71.7% (95% CI, 35.0-100%). Diagnostic threshold bias was identified as an important cause of heterogeneity for pooled results in both patient groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Fibroscan and APRI appear to be clinically useful tests for detecting cirrhosis however not useful tools in early stages of fibrosis.

Discordance between liver biopsy and FibroTest in assessing liver fibrosis in chronic hepatitis B

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

The FibroTest (FT) demonstrated excellent diagnostic performance in the prediction of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). Here, we aimed to identify predictors of discordance between FT and liver biopsy (LB) in Asian patients with CHB.

METHODS

Consecutive patients with CHB who underwent both LB and FT on the same day between 2007 and 2010 were recruited from three medical institutes. Laboratory evaluations including specific parameters for calculating FT score, such as α2-macroglobulin, apolipoprotein A1, haptoglobin, γ-glutamyl transpeptidase, and total bilirubin levels, were obtained. The Batts and Ludwig scoring system was used for histological analysis.

RESULTS

A total of 330 patients (200 male and 130 female) were analyzed. Discordances of at least two fibrosis stages between FT and LB were observed in 30 (9.1%) patients; using FT, fibrosis was underestimated in 25 patients and overestimated in 5 patients with reference to LB. Patients with discordance had a higher proportion of F3-4 (P<0.001) and F4 (P = 0.012) compared with those with nondiscordance. The discordance rate was significantly higher in those with F3-4 than those with F1-2 (15.4% vs. 3.0%, P<0.001). Multivariate analysis demonstrated F3-4 at LB as the only independent factor for discordance (P<0.001; odds ratio 5.95). After adjusting fibrosis stages, neither necroinflammatory activity on histology nor serum ALT level influenced FT values independently.

CONCLUSION

Advanced fibrosis stage (F3-4) is the sole factor of discordance between FT and LB in Asian patients with CHB.

Serum apoptosis markers related to liver damage in chronic hepatitis C: sFas as a marker of advanced fibrosis in children and adults while M30 of severe steatosis only in children

Background

Liver biopsy represents the gold standard for evaluating damage and progression in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC); however, developing noninvasive tests that can predict liver injury represents a growing medical need. Considering that hepatocyte apoptosis plays a role in CHC pathogenesis; the aim of our study was to evaluate the presence of different apoptosis markers that correlate with liver injury in a cohort of pediatric and adult patients with CHC.

Methods

Liver biopsies and concomitant serum samples from 22 pediatric and 22 adult patients with CHC were analyzed. Histological parameters were evaluated. In serum samples soluble Fas (sFas), caspase activity and caspase-generated neoepitope of the CK-18 proteolytic fragment (M30) were measured.

Results

sFas was associated with fibrosis severity in pediatric (significant fibrosis p = 0.03, advanced fibrosis p = 0.01) and adult patients (advanced fibrosis p = 0.02). M30 levels were elevated in pediatric patients with severe steatosis (p = 0.01) while in adults no relation with any histological variable was observed. Caspase activity levels were higher in pediatric samples with significant fibrosis (p = 0.03) and they were associated with hepatitis severity (p = 0.04) in adult patients. The diagnostic accuracy evaluation demonstrated only a good performance for sFas to evaluate advanced fibrosis both in children (AUROC: 0.812) and adults (AUROC: 0.800) as well as for M30 to determine steatosis severity in children (AUROC: 0.833).

Conclusions

Serum sFas could be considered a possible marker of advanced fibrosis both in pediatric and adult patient with CHC as well as M30 might be a good predictor of steatosis severity in children.

Suboptimal performance of simple noninvasive tests for advanced fibrosis in Chinese patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of some noninvasive fibrosis models in Chinese patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

METHODS

Consecutive biopsy-proven NAFLD patients were recruited from a single center from January 2005 to December 2010. Advanced fibrosis (stage 3 and 4) was defined using Kleiner criteria. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) was used to compare the diagnostic accuracy of the NAFLD fibrosis score (NFS), FIB-4 index, aspartate transaminase (AST)/platelet ratio index (APRI), AST/alanine transaminase (ALT) ratio (AAR) and body mass index (BMI)-AAR-Diabetes (BARD) score.

RESULTS

Of the patients with NAFLD, 79.6% were males with a mean age of 37.1 years, mean BMI of 26.1 kg/m(2) and 41.4% of them had nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, and 24 (15.8%) had advanced fibrosis. The AUROC of the FIB-4 index, APRI, AAR, NFS and BARD score for advanced fibrosis were 0.756, 0.742, 0.670, 0.653 and 0.642 (P < 0.05 for all), respectively. A concordant negative predictive value of approximately 90% was indicated whereas the positive predictive values were modest for all tests, and only the FIB-4 index yielded a higher positive likelihood ratio of 7.65. Using these cut-off values of tests for excluding advanced fibrosis could reduce the use of liver biopsy in 56.6-74.3% of the patients, with a minor false negative rate of 5.3-9.9%.

CONCLUSIONS

Although slightly less accurate than liver biopsy, simple noninvasive tests can reliably exclude advanced fibrosis in Chinese NAFLD patients in our center. FIB-4 index performs better than the other tests under examination.

Prospective validation of FibroTest in comparison with liver stiffness for predicting liver fibrosis in Asian subjects with chronic hepatitis B

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Diagnostic values of FibroTest (FT) for hepatic fibrosis have rarely been assessed in Asian chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients. We aimed to validate its diagnostic performances in comparison with liver stiffness (LS).

METHODS

From 2008 to 2010, 194 CHB patients who underwent liver biopsies along with FT and transient elastography were prospectively enrolled. Fibrosis stage was assessed according to the Batts and Ludwig system.

RESULTS

To predict significant fibrosis (F≥2), advanced fibrosis (F≥3), and cirrhosis (F = 4), areas under receiver operating characteristic curves (AUROCs) of FT were 0.903, 0.907, and 0.866, comparable to those of LS (0.873, 0.897, and 0.910, respectively). Optimized cutoffs of FT to maximize sum of sensitivity and specificity were 0.32, 0.52, and 0.68 for F≥2, F≥3, and F = 4, while those of LS were 8.8, 10.2, and 14.1 kPa, respectively. According to FT and LS cutoffs, 123 (63.4%) and 124 (63.9%) patients were correctly classified consistent with histological fibrosis (F1, F2, F3, and F4), respectively. Overall concordance between each fibrosis stage estimated by FT and LS was observed in 111 patients, where 88 were correctly classified with histological results. A combination formula adding LS to FT (LS+FT) showed similar AUROC levels (0.885, 0.905, and 0.915), while another multiplying LS by FT (LS×FT) showed the best AUROCs (0.941, 0.931, and 0.929 for F≥2, F≥3, and F4, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS

FT provides good fibrosis prediction, with comparable outcomes to LS in Asian CHB patients. FT substantially reduces need for liver biopsy, especially when used in combination with LS.

Relative performances of FibroTest, Fibroscan, and biopsy for the assessment of the stage of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C: a step toward the truth in the absence of a gold standard

BACKGROUND & AIMS

Liver fibrosis stage is traditionally assessed with biopsy, an imperfect gold standard. Two widely used techniques, FibroTest®, and liver stiffness measurement (LSM) using Fibroscan® have been validated using biopsy, and therefore the true performances of these estimates are still unknown in the absence of a perfect reference. The aim was to assess the relative accuracy of FibroTest, LSM, and biopsy using methods without gold standard in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) and controls.

METHODS

A total of 1289 patients with CHC and 604 healthy volunteers, with assessment of fibrosis stage by the three techniques, and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) taken as a control test, were analyzed by latent class method with random effects. In the volunteers, the false positive risk of biopsy was obtained from a large surgical sample of four normal livers.

RESULTS

The latent class model with random effects permitted to conciliate the observed data and estimates of test performances. For advanced fibrosis, the specificity/sensitivity was for FibroTest 0.93/0.70, LSM 0.96/0.45, ALT 0.79/0.78 and biopsy 0.67/0.63, and for cirrhosis FibroTest 0.87/0.41, LSM 0.93/0.39, ALT 0.78/0.08 and biopsy 0.95/0.51. The analysis of the discordances between pairs suggested that the variability of the model was mainly related to the discordances between biopsy and LSM (residuals>10; p<0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

A method without the use of a gold standard confirmed the accuracy of FibroTest and Fibroscan for the diagnosis of advanced fibrosis and cirrhosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C. The variability of the model was mostly due to the discordances between Fibroscan and biopsy.

Discordance in fibrosis staging between liver biopsy and transient elastography using the FibroScan XL probe

BACKGROUND & AIMS

The FibroScan XL probe facilitates liver stiffness measurement (LSM) by transient elastography (TE) in obese patients, yet factors affecting its accuracy have not been described. Our objectives were to examine the prevalence, risk factors, and causes of discordance between fibrosis estimated by the FibroScan XL probe and biopsy.

METHODS

Two hundred and ten patients with chronic liver disease (45% viral hepatitis, 55% nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and a body mass index (BMI) ≥ 28 kg/m(2)) underwent liver biopsy and TE with the FibroScan XL probe. Predictors of discordance ≥ 2 fibrosis stages between measures, which occurred in 11% of patients (n=24), were identified by comparing patient, TE, and biopsy characteristics of discordant and non-discordant cases.

RESULTS

Fibrosis estimated by the FibroScan XL probe was greater than biopsy in 75% (18/24) of discordant cases. Although biopsy quality was not associated with discordance, discordant cases were less likely to have ≥ 10 valid shots (75% vs. 97%; p=0.001), a success rate ≥ 60% (67% vs. 95%; p <0.0005), and an interquartile range over median liver stiffness (IQR/M) <21% (37% vs. 57%; p=0.07) than non-discordant cases. However, only increased BMI (odds ratio [OR] 1.09 per kg/m(2); 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.01-1.18; p=0.04) was independently associated with discordance; liver stiffness was of borderline significance (OR 1.73 per log(10)-transformed value; 95% CI 0.95-3.18; p=0.08). Discordance was 4- to 5-fold more frequent among patients with severe obesity (BMI ≥ 40 kg/m(2): 32% vs. 8%) and liver stiffness above the median of 7.0 kPa (20% vs. 4%; both p <0.0005).

CONCLUSIONS

Discordance between liver fibrosis estimated by biopsy and TE using the FibroScan XL probe was infrequent in this obese population. Patients with severe obesity and elevated liver stiffness have the greatest risk of discordance.

Comparison of three algorithms of non-invasive markers of fibrosis in chronic hepatitis C

BACKGROUND

Preliminary data suggest that performance of non-invasive markers for liver fibrosis in hepatitis C may improve when combined. Three algorithms based on the combination of Fibrotest, Forns' index and AST-to-platelet ratio (APRI) have been proposed: Sequential Algorithm for Fibrosis Evaluation (SAFE biopsy); Fibropaca algorithm; Leroy algorithm.

AIM

To compare three algorithms to diagnose significant fibrosis (≥ F2 by METAVIR) and cirrhosis (F4).

METHODS

A total of 1013 HCV monoinfected cases undergoing liver biopsy were consecutively enrolled in seven centres. Fibrotest, APRI and Forns' index were measured at the time of liver biopsy, considered the reference standard.

RESULTS

Overall, performance of combination algorithms was significantly higher than the single non-invasive methods (P < 0.0001). SAFE biopsy and Fibropaca algorithm saved a significantly higher number of liver biopsies than the single methods (P < 0.0001). For ≥ F2, Fibropaca algorithm saved more biopsies than SAFE biopsy (51.7% vs. 43.8%, P = 0.0003), but with lower accuracy (87.6% vs. 90.3%, P = 0.05). Regarding F4, the number of saved liver biopsies did not differ between SAFE biopsy and Fibropaca algorithm (79.1% vs. 76.2%, P = 0.12). However, SAFE biopsy showed a lower accuracy when compared with Fibropaca algorithm (91.2% vs. 94%, P = 0.02). As to Leroy algorithm, although it showed a good performance for ≥ F2 (93.5% accuracy), it saved less liver biopsies than SAFE biopsy and Fibropaca algorithm (29.2% vs. 43.8% and 51.7% respectively, P < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

SAFE biopsy and the Fibropaca algorithm have excellent performance for liver fibrosis in hepatitis C, allowing a significant reduction in the need for liver biopsies. They can be useful in clinical practice and for large-scale screening.

FibroSURE and FibroScan in relation to treatment response in chronic hepatitis C virus

AIM

To compare histological endpoint assessment using noninvasive alternatives to biopsy during treatment in a chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) cohort.

METHODS

Patients with chronic HCV were randomized to receive interferon-based therapy for 24 (genotypes 2/3) or 48 (genotype 1) wk. FibroSURE™ (FS) was assessed at baseline and at week-12 post-treatment follow-up. Baseline biopsy for METAVIR was assessed by a single pathologist. FibroScan(®) transient elastography (TE) was performed during treatment in a patient subset.

RESULTS

Two thousand and sixty patients (n = 253 in Asia) were classified as METAVIR F0-1 (n = 1682) or F2-4 (n = 378). For F2-4, FS (n = 2055) had sensitivity and specificity of 0.87 and 0.61, respectively, with area under the receiver-operating curve of 0.82; corresponding values for TE (n = 214) and combined FS/TE (n = 209) were 0.77, 0.88 and 0.88, and 0.93, 0.68 and 0.88. Overall FS/TE agreement for F2-4 was 71% (κ = 0.41) and higher in Asians vs non-Asians (κ = 0.86 vs 0.35; P < 0.001). Combined FS/TE had 97% accuracy in Asians (n = 33). Baseline FS (0.38 vs 0.51, P < 0.001) and TE (8.0 kPa vs 11.9 kPa, P = 0.006) scores were lower in patients with sustained virological response than in nonresponders, and were maintained through follow-up.

CONCLUSION

FS and TE may reliably differentiate mild from moderate-advanced disease, with a potential for high diagnostic accuracy in Asians with chronic HCV.

FibroTest and Fibroscan performances revisited in patients with chronic hepatitis C. Impact of the spectrum effect and the applicability rate

BACKGROUND

Two widely used biomarkers of fibrosis, FibroTest and liver stiffness measurement (LSM), have been mostly validated in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC) using the standard area under the ROC curve (sAUROC) which is not the most appropriate method due to the risk of fibrosis spectrum effect. Furthermore the performance of these biomarkers have not been assessed in "intention to diagnose" which takes into account the failures and non-reliable results.

AIM

The aim was to compare the accuracy of FibroTest and LSM for the diagnosis of fibrosis using sAUROC, the pairwise comparison of fibrosis stages by Obuchowski measure (wAUROC), and these AUROCs reassessed after taking into account the applicability rates.

METHODS

One thousand two hundred and eighty-nine patients with CHC and 604 healthy volunteers were analyzed. The performances of biomarkers assessed were compared in a patients-only group (P1: n=1289), in a population combining both patients and healthy volunteers (P2: n=1893) and in a simulated population (P3: n=1893) with the prevalence of stages observed in a reference population, to demonstrate the impact of spectrum effect. Applicability rates were estimated prospectively in 24,872 consecutive FibroTest and in 13,669 consecutive LSM examinations.

RESULTS

Using wAUROC, the conclusions of studies with reliable results in P1 were different than in those of P2 and in P3. There was a lower performance of FibroTest versus LSM in P1 (0.864 [0.855-0.873] vs. 0.883 [0.874-0.892]; P=0.002) which was not found in P2 (0.893 [0.887-0.900] vs. 0.894 [0.887-0.901]; P=0.86) and in P3 (0.899 [0.893-0.905] vs 0.902 [0.895-0.909]; P=0.60). Using the sAUROC, in P1, P2 and P3, there was no significant difference between FibroTest and LSM performance for advanced fibrosis and a lower performance of FibroTest versus LSM for cirrhosis. In intention to diagnose, using wAUROCs performances were higher for FibroTest vs. LSM in P1 (0.857 [0.848-0.866] vs. 0.814 [0.807-0.821]; P<0.0001) and P2 (0.885 [0.879-0.892] vs. 0.743 [0.737-0.749]; P<0.0001), without difference in P3 (0.891 [0.885-0.897] vs. 0.894 [0.887-0.901]; P=0.90). Using sAUROC, the significant differences in favor of FibroTest vs LSM persisted also for the diagnosis of advanced fibrosis, both in P1 and P2 (P<0.0001) and for the diagnosis of cirrhosis in P1 (P<0.001).

CONCLUSION

When the spectrum effects and applicability rates were taken into account, LSM had lower performance results than FibroTest for the diagnosis of fibrosis stages.

The impact of liver disease aetiology and the stages of hepatic fibrosis on the performance of non-invasive fibrosis biomarkers: an international study of 2411 cases

BACKGROUND

Performance of non-invasive fibrosis biomarkers may be influenced by aetiology of chronic liver disease (CLD) and the stages of hepatic fibrosis, but large-scale studies are pending.

AIM

To investigate the effect of aetiogy and stages of hepatic fibrosis on the performance of fibrosis biomarkers.

METHODS

A total of 2411 patients with compensated CLD (HCV=75.1%, HBV=10.5%, NASH=7.9%, HIV/HCV=6.5%) were consecutively enrolled in 9 centres. APRI, Forns'index, Lok index, AST-to-ALT ratio, Fib-4, platelets and Fibrotest-Fibrosure were tested against liver biopsy, considered the gold standard. The effect of the stages of hepatic fibrosis to diagnose significant fibrosis and cirrhosis (≥F2 and F4 respectively) was investigated through difference between advanced and non-advanced fibrosis stages (DANA). Performance was expressed as observed area under the ROC curve (ObAUROC) and AUROC adjusted for DANA (AdjAUROC).

RESULTS

Performance of APRI and Fibrotest-Fibrosure was higher than other biomarkers. In all aetiologies, AdjAUROC was higher than ObAUROC. APRI showed its best performance in HCV monoinfected cases, with an AdjAUROC of 0.77 and 0.83 for ≥F2 and F4 respectively. In HBV and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) patients, its performance was poor (AdjAUROC <0.70). Performance of Fibrotest-Fibrosure was good in all aetiologies for both ≥F2 and F4 (AdjAUROC >0.73), except for ≥F2 in NASH (AdjAUROC = 0.64). Performance of all biomarkers was reduced in HCV cases with normal ALT.

CONCLUSIONS

Aetiology is a major factor influencing the performance of liver fibrosis biomarkers. Even after correction for DANA, APRI and Fibrotest-Fibrosure exhibit the best performance. However, liver biopsy is not replaceable, especially to diagnose ≥F2 and in HCV carriers with normal ALT.

The role of serum biomarkers in predicting fibrosis progression in pediatric and adult hepatitis C virus chronic infection

Background/Aims

Liver biopsy represents the gold standard for damage evaluation, but noninvasive serum markers that mirror liver fibrosis progression are actual goals both in adults and especially in children. The aim was to determine specific serum markers that correlate with liver fibrosis progression during chronic HCV infection.

Methods

Liver biopsies and concomitant serum samples from 22 pediatric and 22 adult HCV patients were analyzed. Histological parameters were evaluated. On serum TGF-ß1, tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloprotein inhibitor-1 (TIMP-1), hyaluronic acid (HA) and aminoterminal peptide of procollagen type III (PIIINP) were tested.

Results

Significant fibrosis (F≥2) and advanced fibrosis (F≥3) represented 64% and 20%, respectively in children; while 54% F≥2 and 23% F≥3 in adults. Hyaluronic acid (p = 0.011) and PIIINP (p = 0.016) were related to worse fibrosis stages only in adults, along with TIMP-1 (p = 0.039) just in children; but TGF-ß1 was associated with mild fibrosis (p = 0.022) in adults. The AUROC of TIMP-1 in children to discriminate advanced fibrosis was 0.800 (95%IC 0.598–0.932). In adults, the best AUROCs were that of HA, PIIINP and TGF-ß1 [0.929 (IC95% 0.736–0.994), 0.894 (IC95% 0.689–0.984) and 0.835 (IC95% 0.617–0.957)], respectively. In children, according to the cut off (165.7 ng/mL) value for TIMP-1, biopsies could have been avoided in 72% (18/25). Considering the cut off for HA (109.7 ng/mL), PIIINP (9.1 µg/L), and TGF-ß1 (10,848.3 pg/mL), biopsies could have been avoided in 87% (19/22) of adult patients by using HA and 73% (16/22) using PIIINP or TGF-ß1.

Conclusions

In adults given the diagnostic accuracy of HA, PIIINP, TGF-ß1, their combination may provide a potential useful tool to assess liver fibrosis. This first pediatric study suggests that TIMP-1 is clinically useful for predicting liver fibrosis in HCV patients.

Noninvasive Markers of Hepatic Fibrosis in Chronic Hepatitis B

A serum biomarker (FibroTest; Biopredictive, Paris, France; FibroSure; LabCorp, Burlington, USA) and liver stiffness measurement (LSM) by Fibroscan (Echosens, Paris, France) have been extensively validated in chronic hepatitis C. This review updates the clinical validation of serum biomarkers and LSM in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). One meta-analysis combined all published studies and another used a database combining FibroTest individual data. Sensitivity analysis assessed the impact of several factors, including authors' independence, length of biopsy, ethnicity, hepatitis B early antigen status, viral load, and alanine aminotransferase value. Only two biomarkers had several validations: FibroTest (8 studies, 1,842 patients), and Fibroscan (5 studies, 618 patients). For the diagnosis of advanced fibrosis, the standardized area under the receiver operating curve was 0.84 (0.79-0.86) for FibroTest and 0.89 (0.83-0.96) for LSM, without significant difference. No significant factors of variability were identified for FibroTest's performance. In conclusion, FibroTest and LSM were the most validated biomarkers of fibrosis in CHB. However, the reliability of Fibroscan must be better assessed.

Invasive and non-invasive methods for the assessment of fibrosis and disease progression in chronic liver disease

Chronic liver diseases represent a major public health problem, accounting for significant morbidity and mortality worldwide. Their prognosis and management greatly depend on the amount and progression of liver fibrosis with the risk of developing cirrhosis. Liver biopsy, traditionally considered as the reference standard for staging of fibrosis, has been challenged over the past decade by the development of novel non invasive methodologies. These methods rely on two distinct but complementary approaches: i) a 'biological' approach based on the dosage of serum biomarkers of fibrosis; ii) a 'physical' approach based on the measurement of liver stiffness using transient elastography (TE). Non invasive methods have been initially studied and validated in chronic hepatitis C but are now increasingly used in other chronic liver diseases, resulting in a significant decrease in the need for liver biopsy. However, they will likely not completely abolish the need for liver biopsy and they should rather be employed as an integrated system with liver biopsy. This review is aimed at discussing the advantages and inconveniences of non invasive methods in comparison with liver biopsy for the management of patients with chronic liver diseases.

FibroTest is an independent predictor of virologic response in chronic hepatitis C patients retreated with pegylated interferon alfa-2b and ribavirin in the EPIC³ program

BACKGROUND & AIMS

EPIC-3 is a prospective, international study that has demonstrated the efficacy of PEG-IFN alfa-2b plus weight-based ribavirin in patients with chronic hepatitis C and significant fibrosis who previously failed any interferon-alfa/ribavirin therapy. The aim of the present study was to assess FibroTest (FT), a validated non-invasive marker of fibrosis in treatment-naive patients, as a possible alternative to biopsy as the baseline predictor of subsequent early virologic (EVR) and sustained virologic response (SVR) in previously treated patients.

METHODS

Of 2312 patients enrolled, 1459 had an available baseline FT, biopsy, and complete data. Uni- (UV) and multi-variable (MV) analyses were performed using FT and biopsy.

RESULTS

Baseline characteristics were similar as in the overall population; METAVIR stage: 28% F2, 29% F3, and 43% F4, previous relapsers 29%, previous PEG-IFN regimen 41%, high baseline viral load (BVL) 64%. 506 patients (35%) had undetectable HCV-RNA at TW12 (TW12neg), with 58% achieving SVR. The accuracy of FT was similar to that in naive patients: AUROC curve for the diagnosis of F4 vs F2=0.80 (p<0.00001). Five baseline factors were associated (p<0.001) with SVR in UV and MV analyses (odds ratio: UV/MV): fibrosis stage estimated using FT (4.5/5.9) or biopsy (1.5/1.6), genotype 2/3 (4.5/5.1), BVL (1.5/1.3), prior relapse (1.6/1.6), previous treatment with non-PEG-IFN (2.6/2.0). These same factors were associated (p ≤ 0.001) with EVR. Among patients TW12neg, two independent factors remained highly predictive of SVR by MV analysis (p ≤ 0.001): genotype 2/3 (odds ratio=2.9), fibrosis estimated with FT (4.3) or by biopsy (1.5).

CONCLUSIONS

FibroTest at baseline is a possible non-invasive alternative to biopsy for the prediction of EVR at 12 weeks and SVR, in patients with previous failures and advanced fibrosis, retreated with PEG-IFN alfa-2b and ribavirin.

A combination of the pediatric NAFLD fibrosis index and enhanced liver fibrosis test identifies children with fibrosis

BACKGROUND & AIMS

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) encompasses diseases from simple steatosis, to steatohepatitis, to fibrosis, and cirrhosis. The pediatric NAFLD fibrosis index (PNFI) and the enhanced liver fibrosis (ELF) test are potential noninvasive markers for fibrosis. We prospectively evaluated the performance of PNFI and ELF in assessing fibrosis in children with biopsy-proven NAFLD.

METHODS

We analyzed 111 consecutive children with NAFLD. The stage of fibrosis was scored according to the Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis Clinical Research Network. PNFI was calculated based on age, waist circumference, and levels of triglycerides. The ELF test was used to determine levels of hyaluronic acid, the amino-terminal propeptide of type III collagen, and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-1.

RESULTS

Some degree of fibrosis was detected in 68.5% of patients (62 had stage 1, 5 had stage 2, and 9 had stage 3). PNFI and ELF test values was higher among patients with fibrosis (P < .001). The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve for predicting fibrosis using the PNFI and ELF test was 0.761 and 0.924, respectively. The best performance was obtained by combining PNFI and ELF test with (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve = 0.944). The combined results from the PNFI and ELF test predicted the presence or absence of fibrosis in 86.4% of children with NAFLD.

CONCLUSIONS

In children with NAFLD, the combined results from the PNFI and ELF test can accurately assess the presence of liver fibrosis and identify patients that should be evaluated by liver biopsy.

Enhanced Liver Fibrosis (ELF) test accurately identifies liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C

Assessment of liver fibrosis is important in determining prognosis and evaluating interventions. Due to limitations of accuracy and patient hazard of liver biopsy, non-invasive methods have been sought to provide information on liver fibrosis, including the European liver fibrosis (ELF) test, shown to have good diagnostic accuracy for the detection of moderate and severe fibrosis. Access to independent cohorts of patients has provided an opportunity to explore if this test could be simplified. This paper reports the simplification of the ELF test and its ability to identity severity of liver fibrosis in external validation studies in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CHC). Paired biopsy and serum samples from 347 naïve patients with CHC in three independent cohorts were analysed. Diagnostic performance characteristics were derived (AUROC, sensitivity and specificity, predictive values), and clinical utility modelling performed to determine the proportion of biopsies that could have been avoided if ELF test was used in this patient group. It was possible to simplify the original ELF test without loss of performance and the new algorithm is reported. The simplified ELF test was able to predict severe fibrosis [pooled AUROC of 0.85 (95% CI 0.81-0.89)] and using clinical utility modelling to predict severe fibrosis (Ishak stages 4-6; METAVIR stages 3 and 4) 81% of biopsies could have been avoided (65% correctly). Issues of spectrum effect in diagnostic test evaluations are discussed. In chronic hepatitis C a simplified ELF test can detect severe liver fibrosis with good accuracy.

Transient elastography for the noninvasive assessment of liver fibrosis: a multicentre Canadian study

BACKGROUND

Liver stiffness measurement (LSM) using transient elastography (TE) is a promising tool for the noninvasive assessment of hepatic fibrosis.

OBJECTIVES

To determine the feasibility and performance of TE in a North American cohort of patients with chronic liver disease.

METHODS

LSMs were obtained using TE in 260 patients with chronic hepatitis B or C, or nonalcoholic fatty liver disease from four Canadian hepatology centres. The accuracy of TE compared with liver biopsy for the prediction of significant fibrosis (Metavir fibrosis score of F2 or greater), bridging fibrosis (Metavir fibrosis score of F3 or greater) and cirrhosis (Metavir fibrosis score of F4 ) was assessed using area under ROC curves (AUROCs), and compared with the aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index. The influence of alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels and other factors on liver stiffness was determined using linear regression analyses.

RESULTS

failure of TE occurred in 2.7% of patients, while liver biopsies were inadequate for staging in 0.8%. Among the remaining 251 patients, the AUROCs of TE for Metavir fibrosis scores of F2 and F3 or greater, and F4 were 0.74 (95% CI 0.68 to 0.80), 0.89 (95% CI 0.84 to 0.94), and 0.94 (95% CI 0.90 to 0.97), respectively. LSM was more accurate than the aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index for bridging fibrosis (AUROC 0.78) and cirrhosis (AUROC 0.88), but not significant fibrosis (AUROC 0.76). At a cut-off of 11.1 kPa, the sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values for cirrhosis (prevalence 11%) were 96%, 81%, 39% and 99%, respectively. For significant fibrosis (prevalence 53%), a cut-off of 7.7 kPa was 68% sensitive and 69% specific, and had a positive predictive value of 70% and a negative predictive value of 65%. Liver stiffness was independently associated with ALT, body mass index and steatosis. The optimal LSM cut-offs for cirrhosis were 11.1 kPa and 11.5 kPa in patients with ALT levels lower than 100 U⁄L and 100 U⁄L or greater, respectively. For fibrosis scores of F2 or greater, these figures were 7.0 kPa and 8.6 kPa, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

the major role of TE is the exclusion of bridging fibrosis and cirrhosis. However, TE cannot replace biopsy for the diagnosis of significant fibrosis. Because liver stiffness may be influenced by significant ALT elevation, body mass index and⁄or steatosis, tailored liver stiffness cut-offs may be necessary to account for these factors.

External validation of P2/MS and comparison with other simple non-invasive indices for predicting liver fibrosis in HBV-infected patients

BACKGROUND

To optimize management strategies and predict the long-term clinical course in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB), non-invasive tests to determine the degree of hepatic fibrosis have been developed.

AIMS

We aimed to conduct a large-scale external validation of a simple, non-invasive test called P2/MS using CHB patients and to compare it to other non-invasive tests for the prediction of histological cirrhosis.

METHODS

From 2006 to 2009, we enrolled a total of 521 consecutive CHB patients who underwent liver biopsy. Fibrosis stage was assessed according to the Metavir scoring system by a single pathologist who was unaware of the patients' histories.

RESULTS

For predictions of significant (p>or=2) and severe (p>or=3) fibrosis and cirrhosis (p=4), the areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves were 0.801, 0.856, and 0.906, respectively. In predicting cirrhosis, we found that diagnostic values were comparable to age-spleen platelet ratio index (0.931, p=0.063), spleen-platelet ratio index (0.923, p=0.145), age-platelet index (0.914, p=0.670), and FIB-4 (0.898. p=0.597) and had better outcomes than the aspartate aminotransferase (AST)-platelet ratio index (0.780, p<0.001), and AST-alanine aminotransferase ratio index (0.729, p<0.001). The cut-off points of P2/MS>83 and P2/MS<30 provided 91.1% of negative predictive value and 91.3% of positive predictive value, respectively. Based on these results, liver biopsies could be avoided in 67.0% of the population. These cut-offs were validated internally using bootstrap resampling methods, which showed good agreement.

CONCLUSIONS

P2/MS is a simple, accurate, and inexpensive method with comparable outcomes to other non-invasive tests and may reduce the need for liver biopsy in the majority of CHB patients.

ActiTest accuracy for the assessment of histological activity grades in patients with chronic hepatitis C, an overview using Obuchowski measure

BACKGROUND

ActiTest (AT) is a biomarker of liver necro-inflammatory histological activity validated in patients with chronic hepatitis C (HCV).

AIM

The aim was to assess the accuracy of AT in comparison with alanine aminotransferase (ALT) the standard of care.

METHODS

Methods used an integrated database of individual data and the new recommended Obuchowski measures. An updated "classical" meta-analysis of AT validation studies was also performed. The main end points were the area under the ROC curves (AUROCs) for the diagnosis of each histological activity grade defined using METAVIR scoring system. To avoid repeated tests and the spectrum effect of activity grades prevalence, the comparison of AT and ALT accuracies used the Obuchowski method.

RESULTS

For the individual analysis, a total of 1250 patients were included and for the meta-analysis six studies (2017 patients) were included. The overall accuracy of AT for the diagnosis of any activity grade (Obuchowski measure=0.850) was significantly higher than the accuracy of ALT (Obuchowski measure=0.837; P=0.009). The updated standard meta-analysis confirmed the accuracy of AT (p<0.0001) both in independent AUROC=0.79 (95% CI, 0.73-0.85) and in non independent studies AUROC=0.74 (95% CI, 0.67-0.81).

CONCLUSIONS

The accuracy of AT for grading the necro-inflammatory activity of patients with HCV was significantly higher than ALT serum activity alone, the standard biomarker.

Severity of liver injury and atherogenic lipid profile in children with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the hepatic manifestation of the metabolic syndrome. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between severity of liver injury and atherogenic lipid profile in a large group of children with NAFLD. A total of 118 consecutive children with biopsy-proven NAFLD were included. Patients underwent extensive metabolic profiling. The NAFLD activity and fibrosis scores showed a significant positive correlation with triglyceride/HDL, total cholesterol/HDL, and LDL/HDL ratios (p<0.05) but not with apolipoprotein B/apolipoprotein A-1 ratio (p=0.58). After adjusting for BMI, homeostatic model assessment, impaired glucose tolerance, and presence of metabolic syndrome, both the NAFLD activity score and stage of fibrosis remained independent predictors of proatherogenic lipid profile. All lipid ratios, except for apolipoprotein B/apolipoprotein A-1, were found to be markedly higher in children with nonalcoholic steatohepatitis compared with those with simple steatosis or borderline disease (p<0.05). This study shows for the first time that in children with NAFLD, the severity of liver injury is strongly associated with the presence of a more atherogenic lipid profile, having potential significant diagnostic and therapeutic implications.

Validation of FIB-4 and comparison with other simple noninvasive indices for predicting liver fibrosis and cirrhosis in hepatitis B virus-infected patients

BACKGROUNDS

To optimize management and predict long-term clinical courses in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB), noninvasive tests to determine the degree of hepatic fibrosis have been developed.

AIMS

This study aimed to validate a simple, noninvasive FIB-4 index, which was first derived from an HCV-HIV-co-infected population, in patients with CHB and to compare it with other noninvasive tests for predicting cirrhosis.

METHODS

From 2006-2008, a total of 668 consecutive CHB patients who underwent liver biopsies were enrolled. The fibrosis stage was assessed according to the Batts and Ludwig system by a single pathologist blinded to patients' data.

RESULTS

For prediction of significant (F > or = 2) and severe (F > or = 3) fibrosis, and cirrhosis (F = 4), the area under the receiver-operating characteristic curves were 0.865, 0.910 and 0.926 respectively. In predicting cirrhosis, it demonstrated diagnostic values comparable to the age-spleen platelet ratio index (0.937, P=0.414) and age-platelet index (0.928, P=0.888), and better outcomes than spleen-platelet ratio index (0.882, P=0.007), aspartate aminotransferase (AST)-platelet ratio index (0.731, P<0.001) and AST-alanine aminotransferase ratio index (0.730, P<0.001). FIB-4 cut-offs of 1.6 and 3.6 provided 93.2% negative predictive value and 90.8% positive predictive value for detection of cirrhosis respectively. Based on these results, liver biopsy could be avoided in 70.5% of the study population. These cut-offs were validated internally using bootstrap resampling methods, showing good agreement.

CONCLUSIONS

FIB-4 is a simple, accurate and inexpensive method of predicting cirrhosis, with outcomes comparable to other noninvasive tests and may reduce the need for liver biopsy in the majority of CHB patients.

Assessment of liver fibrosis: noninvasive means

Liver biopsy, owing to its limitations and risks, is an imperfect gold standard for assessing the severity of the most frequent chronic liver diseases chronic hepatitis C (HCV), B (HBV) non alcoholic (NAFLD) and alcoholic (ALD) fatty liver diseases. This review summarizes the advantages and the limits of the available biomarkers of liver fibrosis. Among a total of 2,237 references, a total of 14 validated serum biomarkers have been identified between 1991 and 2008. Nine were not patented and five were patented. Two alternatives to liver biopsy were the most evaluated FibroTest and Fibroscan. For FibroTest, there was a total of 38 different populations including 7,985 subjects with both FibroTest and biopsy (4,600 HCV, 1,580 HBV, 267 NAFLD, 524 ALD, and 1014 mixed). For Fibroscan, there was a total of 11 published studies including 2,260 subjects (1,466 HCV, 95 cholestatic liver disease, and 699 mixed). For FibroTest, the mean diagnostic value for the diagnosis of advanced fibrosis assessed using standardized area under the ROC curves was 0.84 (95% confidence interval 0.83-0.86), without a significant difference between the causes of liver disease, hepatitis C, hepatitis B, and alcoholic or non alcoholic fatty liver disease. High-risk profiles of false negative/false positive of FibroTest, mainly Gilbert syndrome, hemolysis and acute inflammation, are present in 3% of the populations. In case of discordance between biopsy and FibroTest, half of the failures can be due to biopsy; the prognostic value of FibroTest is at least similar to that of biopsy in HCV, HBV and ALD. In conclusion this overview of evidence-based data suggests that biomarkers could be used as an alternative to liver biopsy for the first line assessment of fibrosis stage in the four most common chronic liver diseases, namely HCV, HBV, NAFLD and ALD. Neither biomarkers nor biopsy alone is sufficient for taking a definite decision in a given patient; all the clinical and biological data must be taken into account. There is no evidence based data justifying biopsy as a first line estimate of liver fibrosis. Health authorities in some countries have already approved validated biomarkers as the first line procedure for the staging of liver fibrosis.

Acoustic radiation force imaging sonoelastography for noninvasive staging of liver fibrosis

AIM: To investigate the diagnostic accuracy of acoustic radiation force impulse (ARFI) imaging as a noninvasive method for the assessment of liver fibrosis in chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients.

METHODS: We performed a prospective blind comparison of ARFI elastography, APRI index and FibroMax in a consecutive series of patients who underwent liver biopsy for CHC in University Hospital Bucharest. Histopathological staging of liver fibrosis according to the METAVIR scoring system served as the reference. A total of 74 patients underwent ARFI elastography, APRI index, FibroMax and successful liver biopsy.

RESULTS: The noninvasive tests had a good correlation with the liver biopsy results. The most powerful test in predicting fibrosis was ARFI elastography. The diagnostic accuracy of ARFI elastography, expressed as area under receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) had a validity of 90.2% (95% CI AUROC = 0.831-0.972, P < 0.001) for the diagnosis of significant fibrosis (F ≥ 2). ARFI sonoelastography predicted even better F3 or F4 fibrosis (AUROC = 0.993, 95% CI = 0.979-1).

CONCLUSION: ARFI elastography had very good accuracy for the assessment of liver fibrosis and was superior to other noninvasive methods (APRI Index, FibroMax) for staging liver fibrosis.