OBJECTIVE: To correlate chronic liver disease diagnosed by transcutaneous liver biopsy guided by ultrasound, with ultrasound findings with B-mode and Doppler of the right hepatic vein; 2) to compare the wave patterns between the study group and the control group; 3) to compare the right hepatic vein Doppler findings with histopathology findings as a possible marker of chronic liver disease. METHODS: Were studied 38 patients with chronic liver disease diagnosed by biopsy and serology (study group) and 10 persons without serologic liver disease (control group), assessed only by ultrasound B-mode and Doppler. The criteria were based on histology classification of the Brazilian Society of Pathology for chronic hepatitis. Chi-square, Fisher's exact and Student t tests were used. RESULTS: The B-mode and Doppler ultrasound were useful in inferring the differentiation between individuals with chronic liver disease from normal. There were significant differences between the study group and the controls when comparing the histopathology findings, ultrasound B-mode and Doppler in relationship to the wave patterns of the right hepatic vein. CONCLUSION: The correlation of liver biopsies with ultrasound B-mode and Doppler of hepatic vein was positive; 2) individuals with liver disease showed alterations in the flow of the right hepatic vein and normal subjects not, being the wave pattern in normal triphasic and in patients with chronic liver disease monophasic or biphasic; 3) Doppler of the right hepatic vein is useful marker for chronic liver disease.
Doppler; Righ hepatic vein; Biopsy; Liver fibrosis; Hepatitis C
