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Updated: May 11, 2026
Optimized Analysis of In Vivo and In Vitro Hepatic Steatosis
Published on: March 11, 2017
Ultrasound-derived fat fraction for diagnosing hepatic steatosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Sarah Verdan1, Giovanni B Torri2, Vinícius Neves Marcos3
1Department of Radiology and Diagnostic Imaging, University Hospital of Juiz de Fora - UFJF, Juiz de Fora, Brazil. contatosarahverdan@gmail.com.
Objective:
To perform a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate the diagnostic performance of Ultrasound-Derived Fat Fraction (UDFF) in detecting hepatic steatosis using Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Proton Density Fat Fraction (MRI-PDFF) as the reference standard.
Materials And Methods:
Relevant databases were searched through November 2024. Studies that evaluated the UDFF to detect hepatic steatosis using MRI-PDFF as the reference standard met the inclusion criteria. Our primary outcome was the sensitivity and specificity of UDFF compared to MRI-PDFF in distinguishing steatosis from non-steatosis. Analyses were performed using a bivariate random-effects approach, and heterogeneity was considered substantial if I2 > 50%. A sensitivity analysis was performed to detect potential studies that contribute to heterogeneity.
Results:
Nine studies comprising 1150 patients (mean age range, 14-62 years; 51.2% women) were included. Eight studies were performed using the same vendor platform. The pooled sensitivity of UDFF for detecting hepatic steatosis was 90.4% (95% CI: 84.0%, 94.4%), and the pooled specificity was 83.8% (95% CI: 75.1%, 89.8%). The AUC for the summary receiver-operating characteristic curve was 0.93 (95% CI: 0.83, 0.95). Heterogeneity among the studies was low (I² = 22.2%).
Conclusion:
UDFF demonstrates high sensitivity and specificity for detecting hepatic steatosis, supporting its value as a noninvasive tool for screening.
Key Points:
Question Small individual studies suggest that US-Derived Fat Fraction (UDFF) may effectively detect hepatic steatosis compared to MRI, but no meta-analysis has been performed. Findings In nine studies including 1150 patients, UDFF demonstrated high pooled sensitivity (90.4%) and specificity (83.8%) relative to MRI with low between-study heterogeneity. Clinical relevance UDFF demonstrates high diagnostic accuracy compared with MRI, supporting its use as a noninvasive tool with potentially lower cost and wider availability for large-scale screening of hepatic steatosis.
