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Study to establish normal values for portal vein blood flow in children using a duplex ultrasound system
S Kagimoto1, S Fujitsuka, K Kinoshita
1Department of Pediatrics, National Defense Medical College, Tokorozawa, Saitama.
Insights
Portal blood flow volume in children increases with physical development, primarily due to portal vein widening, not faster flow velocity. This finding aids in evaluating pediatric hepatic circulation.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Medical Imaging
- Hemodynamics
Background:
- Assessing hepatic circulation in children is crucial for diagnosing various conditions.
- Duplex ultrasound is a non-invasive tool for evaluating blood flow.
- Understanding normal portal vein blood flow parameters in children is essential for accurate interpretation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To measure portal vein blood flow volume (PBFV) in healthy children.
- To determine the correlation between PBFV and anthropometric parameters (age, height, weight, body surface area).
- To investigate the relationship between portal vein diameter, maximum portal blood flow velocity (Vmax), and PBFV.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a duplex ultrasound system with B-mode linear scanning and a single Doppler transducer.
- Measured portal vein blood flow volume (PBFV) and maximum portal blood flow velocity (Vmax).
- Correlated hemodynamic measurements with anthropometric data and portal vein diameter.
Main Results:
- PBFV significantly correlated with age, height, weight, and body surface area.
- PBFV increases with age were more pronounced in boys than girls.
- A strong correlation (r = 0.89) was observed between portal vein diameter and PBFV, while Vmax did not correlate with anthropometric parameters.
Conclusions:
- Portal blood flow volume in children increases with physical development, mainly due to portal vein widening.
- Portal vein flowmetry using duplex ultrasound is a valuable method for assessing hepatic circulation in pediatric patients.
- The study provides a formula for calculating PBFV based on age, height, and weight.
Abstract:
Portal vein blood flow in healthy children was measured using a duplex ultrasound system consisting of a B mode linear scanner and a single Doppler transducer. Portal blood flow volume (PBFV) correlated with age, height, weight and body surface area. Increases in PBFV with age were greater in boys than girls. A correlation was noted between the diameter of the portal vein and PBFV (r = 0.89). However, the maximum portal blood flow velocity (Vmax) did not correlate with age, height, weight or body surface area. Increases in PBFV in accordance with physical development was thought to depend mainly on widening of the portal vein and not on acceleration of portal blood flow velocity. The formula for calculating PBFV by multivaliate statistical analysis is as follows: PBFV(ml/min) = 30.1 x age(yrs) - 1.07 x height(cm) = 3.31 x weight(kg). Portal vein flowmetry using a duplex ultrasound system may be useful for evaluation of the hepatic circulation in children.