Liver scintigraphy in chronic hepatosplenic schistosomiasis. A predictor of disease severity

Liver-spleen scintigrams were performed in 42 patients with chronic hepatosplenic schistosomiasis. The scan patterns found are described and classified in five stages of increasing hepatic involvement. The scintigraphic classification correlates well with clinical parameters of disease severity. With higher stages, the number of symptoms and the severity of complications increase. The liver-spleen scan provides a simple and accurate means to determine extent of hepatic involvement and probabilities of complications in this disease.