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BACKGROUND: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a major cause of chronic liver disease, in which liver stiffness increases. Liver stiffness measurements (LSM) are therefore essential in diagnosing liver diseases and predicting disease development. The study objective was to perform a comprehensive prospective assessment of the liver before, after and 4 years after treatment for HCV, including an assessment of the long-term outcome of fibrosis, steatosis and inflammation. METHODS AND FINDINGS: Patients eligible for HCV treatment were included prospectively in 2018 (n = 47). Liver stiffness was measured using transient elastography and 2D shear-wave elastography (SWE). Blood tests, B-mode ultrasound (US) and SWE, were performed before, after (end of treatment [EOT]), 3 months after (EOT3) and 4 years after treatment (4Y). At the final visit, we added attenuation imaging and shear-wave dispersion slope (SWDS) measurements to assess steatosis and inflammation. Three months after treatment, the sustained virologic response rate was 93%. The median liver stiffness for baseline, EOT, EOT3 and 4Y was 8.1, 5.9, 5.6 and 6.3 kPa, respectively. There was a significant reduction in liver stiffness from baseline to EOT, and from EOT to EOT3. After 4 years, the mean attenuation coefficient (AC) was 0.58 dB/cm/MHz, and the mean SWDS value was 14.3 (m/s)/kHz. CONCLUSION: The treatment for HCV was highly effective. Measurements of liver stiffness decreased significantly after treatment and remained low after 4 years. AC measurements indicated low levels of liver steatosis. Shear-wave dispersion values indicated inflammation of the liver, but the clinical implication is undetermined and should be explored in larger studies.Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03434470. ABBREVIATIONS: AC: attenuation coefficient; APRI: aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio index; ATI: attenuation imaging; cACLD: compensated advanced chronic liver disease; CAP: controlled attenuation parameter; FIB-4: Fibrosis-4 Index for liver fibrosis; HCC: hepatocellular carcinoma; LSM: liver stiffness measurement; NAFLD: non-alcoholic fatty liver disease; NASH: non-alcoholic steatohepatitis; SWDS: shear-wave dispersion slope; SWE: shear-wave elastography; US: ultrasound.

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Dynamic contrast-enhanced ultrasound (DCE-US) is a technique to quantify tissue perfusion based on phase-specific enhancement after the injection of microbubble contrast agents for diagnostic ultrasound. The guidelines of the European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (EFSUMB) published in 2004 and updated in 2008, 2011, and 2020 focused on the use of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS), including essential technical requirements, training, investigational procedures and steps, guidance regarding image interpretation, established and recommended clinical indications, and safety considerations. However, the quantification of phase-specific enhancement patterns acquired with ultrasound contrast agents (UCAs) is not discussed here. The purpose of this EFSUMB Technical Review is to further establish a basis for the standardization of DCE-US focusing on treatment monitoring in oncology. It provides some recommendations and descriptions as to how to quantify dynamic ultrasound contrast enhancement, and technical explanations for the analysis of time-intensity curves (TICs). This update of the 2012 EFSUMB introduction to DCE-US includes clinical aspects for data collection, analysis, and interpretation that have emerged from recent studies. The current study not only aims to support future work in this research field but also to facilitate a transition to clinical routine use of DCE-US.

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BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Per oral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) has become an established treatment for achalasia, but no Scandinavian studies with long-term follow-up exist. This study from a tertiary referral center in Norway investigates the short-, mid-, and long-term feasibility, safety, efficacy, and complications of POEM. METHODS: Prospective data from the first 84 patients who underwent POEM from 2014 to 2019 were analyzed. The median follow-up time was 44 months. Clinical success was defined as the Eckardt score (ES) ⩽3, and reflux as pathological if the acid exposure time (pH < 4) was more than 6%. ES was used for symptom evaluation before, and at 6, 12, and up to 64 months after POEM. RESULTS: A total of 50 males and 34 females were included. A total of 43 (51%) were treatment naïve, 24 (28.6%) had been previously treated with botulinum toxin, pneumatic balloon dilatation, or both, and 17 (20.2%) were previously treated with Heller's myotomy. The median post-POEM ES at 12 months was 1 (0-9), compared to pre-POEM 7 (4-12) (p < 0.01). At 12 months after POEM, clinical success persisted in 74 patients (88.1%). Clinical success was the highest for patients who were naïve to treatment, 41/43 (95%), and lower for those previously treated with Heller's myotomy 12/17 (70.6%). Long-term follow-up at 5-6 years of 42 patients showed a clinical success rate of 94%. We experienced adverse events in five patients (6%). Post-POEM pathological reflux was found in 46% (28/61). After 3-4 years, the median ES was 1, and after 5-6 years, it was 2. CONCLUSION: POEM was safe and relieved the symptoms of achalasia significantly and persistently. The procedure had a better outcome in treatment naïve than previously treated patients. However, POEM is associated with significantly increased esophageal acid exposure. TWITTER SUMMARY: Norwegian single-center study: POEM had a clinical success rate of 94% after 5-6 years since its introduction at the center in 2014, providing a safe and effective treatment for achalasia.

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This first position paper of the European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (EFSUMB) on professional standards presents a common position across the different medical professions within EFSUMB regarding optimal standards for the performing and reporting of ultrasound examinations by any professional ultrasound operator. It describes general aspects of professionality that ensure procedure quality, effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability in virtually all application fields of medical ultrasound. Recommendations are given related to safety and indication of ultrasound examinations, requirements for examination rooms, structured examination, systematic reporting of results, and management, communication and archiving of ultrasound data. The print version of this article is a short version. The long version is published online.

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This first position paper of the European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology (EFSUMB) on professional standards presents a common position across the different medical professions within EFSUMB regarding optimal standards for the performing and reporting of ultrasound examinations by any professional ultrasound operator. It describes general aspects of professionality that ensure procedure quality, effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability in virtually all application fields of medical ultrasound. Recommendations are given related to safety and indication of ultrasound examinations, requirements for examination rooms, structured examination, systematic reporting of results, and management, communication and archiving of ultrasound data. The print version of this article is a short version. The long version is published online.

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PURPOSE: Liver elastography is increasingly being applied in screening for and follow-up of pediatric liver disease, and has been shown to correlate well with fibrosis staging through liver biopsy. Because time is of the essence when examining children, we wanted to evaluate if a reliable result can be achieved with fewer acquisitions. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 243 healthy children aged 4-17 years were examined after three hours of fasting. Participants were divided into four age groups: 4-7 years; 8-11 years; 12-14 years and 15-17 years. Both two-dimensional shear wave elastography (2D-SWE; GE Logiq E9) and point shear wave elastography (pSWE; Samsung RS80A with Prestige) were performed in all participants, while transient elastography (TE, Fibroscan) was performed in a subset of 87 children aged 8-17 years. Median liver stiffness measurement (LSM) values of 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 acquisitions were compared with the median value of 10 acquisitions (reference standard). Comparison was performed for all participants together as well as within every specific age group. We investigated both the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) with absolute agreement and all outliers more than 10 %, 20 % or ≥ 0.5 or 1.0 kPa from the median of 10 acquisitions. RESULTS: For all three systems there was no significant difference between three and ten acquisitions, with ICCs ≥ 0.97. All systems needed 4 acquisitions to achieve no LSM deviating ≥ 1.0 kPa of a median of ten. To achieve no LSM deviating ≥ 20 % of a median of ten acquisitions, pSWE and TE needed 4 acquisitions, while 2D-SWE required 6 acquisitions. CONCLUSION: Our results contradict recommendations of 10 acquisitions for pSWE and TE and only 3 for 2D-SWE.

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Purpose Computed tomography (CT) is the most used imaging modality for diagnosing chronic pancreatitis (CP), but advances in transabdominal ultrasound (US) technology have given US a position as a viable alternative. We aimed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of abdominal CT and pancreatic US compared to the reference standard, a modified Mayo score. Materials and Methods CT, US, and endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) were performed in patients referred due to suspected CP. The modified Mayo score included EUS results, clinical presentation, and results from exocrine and endocrine pancreatic function tests. We scored CT findings according to the modified Cambridge classification and US findings according to the Rosemont classification. Results In total, 73 patients were included. 53 patients (73%) were categorized as CP and 20 (27%) as non-CP. CT and US yielded similar sensitivities (68% and 64%, respectively) and specificities (75 and 85%, respectively) and similar areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves for diagnosing CP. We found no significant differences between the areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves (AUROCs) for CT (AUROC 0.75, 95% CI 0.63-0.87) and US (AUROC 0.81, 95% CI 0.71-0.91). Conclusion We conclude that CT and US had comparable, moderate accuracy in diagnosing CP. Neither modality had high enough sensitivity to exclude the diagnosis as a standalone method.

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OBJECTIVES: Computed tomography (CT) is the most commonly used imaging modality when diagnosing chronic pancreatitis (CP). We aimed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of CT scores for diagnosing CP. METHODS: One hundred eighteen patients were retrospectively included from an observational cohort study that comprised patients referred because of suspected CP. Patients were categorized as CP or non-CP using a modified Mayo score based on biochemistry, clinical presentation, and findings on endoscopic ultrasound and/or transabdominal ultrasound. The CT scans were scored according to the modified Cambridge classification and the unweighted CT score. Diagnostic performance indices were calculated using the modified Mayo score as reference standard. RESULTS: Seventy-six of the 118 patients fulfilled the CP diagnostic criteria (Mayo score ≥4). The modified Cambridge classification and the unweighted CT score yielded sensitivities of 63% and 67% and specificities of 91% and 91%, respectively, and similar areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves (95% confidence interval) of 0.79 (0.71-0.88)/0.81 (0.73-0.89), respectively (P, not significant). CONCLUSIONS: Both CT scores had similar, moderate accuracies for diagnosing CP. The limitation in diagnostic accuracy makes CT ineligible as a single method to diagnose CP, supporting that the diagnostic process for CP needs to incorporate other imaging methods and/or markers for better diagnostics.

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BACKGROUND: The present study was undertaken to systematically review the literature on the reliability of using contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) to assess thyroid nodules. To avoid the potential bias in studies using a cytological standard of reference, here we aimed to meta-analyze data from studies adopting histological diagnosis as the gold standard. METHODS: A comprehensive literature exploration of PubMed and Scopus was conducted. The search was updated until June 2018 and references of the retrieved articles screened. Only original articles reporting the histological follow-up of nodules previously undergone CEUS evaluation were eligible for inclusion. Pooled sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV of CEUS were calculated by DerSimonian and Laird method (random-effects model). RESULTS: The literature search retrieved 1885 articles, and 14 were included for the study. There were Chinese, Italian, German, and Austrian authors. All studies used SonoVue. The overall number of reported nodules was 1515, of which 775 were classified as positive at CEUS and 740 as negative. Pooled sensitivity, specificity, PPV, and NPV of CEUS were 85% (95% CI 83-88), 82% (95% CI 77-87), 83% (95% CI 77-88), and 85% (95% CI 81-88), respectively. Moderate inconsistency was present for specificity and PPV. There was publication bias for sensitivity and NPV. CONCLUSIONS: CEUS reaches good performance in discriminating between malignant and benign thyroid lesions.

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This manuscript describes the use of ultrasound elastography, with the exception of liver applications, and represents an update of the 2013 EFSUMB (European Federation of Societies for Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology) Guidelines and Recommendations on the clinical use of elastography.

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Background and study aims Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS)-guided coil placement is a new emerging technique for management of gastric varices. In this video case report, we describe an EUS-guided coil placement for managing acute bleeding of gastric varices, following an unsuccessful glue injection to achieve hemostasis.

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OBJECTIVES: Noninvasive tests for the evaluation of liver fibrosis are particularly helpful in children to avoid general anesthesia and potential complications of invasive tests. We aimed to establish reference values for 2 different elastography methods in a head-to-head comparison for children and adolescents 4 to 17 years, using transient elastography as common reference in a subset. METHODS: A total of 243 healthy participants aged 4 to 17 years were examined by a single observer with a full liver B-mode scan before elastography, following a minimum of 3 hours fasting. Liver stiffness measurements (LSMs) using 2-dimensional shear wave elastography (2D-SWE, GE Logiq E9) and point shear wave elastography (pSWE, Samsung RS80A with Prestige) were performed in all participants, and compared to transient elastography (TE, FibroScan) in a subset (n = 87). Interobserver agreement was evaluated in 50 children aged 4 to 17 years. RESULTS: Valid measurements were obtained in 242 of 243 (99.6%) subjects for 2D-SWE, 238 of 243 (97.9%) for pSWE, and in 83 of 87 (95.4%) for TE. Median liver stiffness overall was 3.3 (interquartile range [IQR] 2.7-4.3), 4.1 (IQR 3.6-4.7), and 4.1 kPa (IQR 3.5-4.6) for 2D-SWE, pSWE, and TE, respectively. Intraclass correlation coefficients between observers were 0.84 and 0.83 for 2D-SWE and pSWE, respectively. LSM values were significantly lower for 2D-SWE compared to pSWE and TE, and increased with advancing age. Higher LSM values in males were observed in adolescents. CONCLUSIONS: All methods showed excellent feasibility. 2D-SWE showed significantly lower LSM values than pSWE and TE, and lower failure rate compared to TE. Our results further indicate an age and sex effect on LSM values.

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The miniaturization of ultrasound equipment in the form of tablet- or smartphone-sized ultrasound equipment is a result of the rapid evolution of technology and handheld ultrasound devices (HHUSD). This position paper of the European Federation of Societies in Ultrasound and Medicine (EFSUMB) assesses the current status of HHUSD in abdominal ultrasound, pediatric ultrasound, targeted echocardiography and heart ultrasound, and we will report position comments on the most common clinical applications. Also included is a SWOT (Strength - Weaknesses - Opportunities - Threats) analysis, the use for handheld devices for medical students, educational & training aspects, documentation, storage and safety considerations.

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PURPOSE: We aimed to evaluate the agreement of single criteria and dedicated scores from transabdominal ultrasound of the pancreas (US) compared to standards by endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) and computed tomography (CT). MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this observational cohort study performed in a tertiary care center, US and EUS were performed in 110 patients referred for suspected CP. Based on the Mayo score, 52 patients were diagnosed with CP. The sonographic findings obtained by both methods were registered. The number of criteria was counted and scored according to the Rosemont score. RESULTS: Agreement between the number of detected US and EUS criteria was substantial (ICC = 0.74 [0.61-0.83]. Adding Rosemont weighting improved the agreement (ICC = 0.88 [0.81-0.92]). Regarding individual criteria, the agreement was substantial for the detection of calcifications (κ = 0.86) and moderate for cysts and irregular or dilated pancreatic duct (κ = 0.42-0.58). Agreement for the other criteria was poorer (κ≤ 0.40). The diagnostic performance indices [95 % CI] of US for diagnosing CP (using Mayo score as reference standard) were for the unweighted score: Sensitivity: 0.65 [0.51-0.78], specificity: 0.97 [0.87-1.00]; and for Rosemont score: Sensitivity: 0.75 [0.61-0.86], specificity: 0.95 [0.83-0.99]. CONCLUSION: The agreement between US and EUS for the unweighted and weighted scores was substantial. For the features calcifications, cysts and main pancreatic duct (MPD) changes, agreement was moderate to substantial. For the other detected US criteria, the agreement with EUS was too poor to be clinically relevant.

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