Abstract: Objective To investigate the usefulness of 2 dimensional ultrasound scoring based on semi-quantitative analysis of ultrasound images in grading of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB). Methods A total of 140 patients were enrolled in the study and divided into 4 groups(F1-F4) according to pathological grading using METAVIR scores system; 47 randomly chose healthy volunteers were enrolled as the control group(F0). An ultrasound examination were double-blindly evaluated by 2 radiologists who have more than 5 years’ working experiences in one hospital specialized in hepatic diseases. Results The liver fibrosis grade correlation coefficient between ultrasound images and histological images was assessed as 0.883 and 0.881 respectively by the two radiologists and combined and finalized as 0.910(P<0.0001). The sensitivity, specificity and consistency of moderate fibrosis (group F2, F3 and F4) grading are 83.2%, 96.3%, and 88.8%, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity and consistency of severe fibrosis(group F3 and F4) grading are 75.4%, 93.2%, and 86.6%, respectively and those for cirrhosis (group F4) are 97.7%, 88.2%, and 90.4%, respectively. Conclusion 2D-mode ultrasound scoring is highly correlated with pathological grading of liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B(CHB). High specificity was demonstrated ingrading of liver fibrosis ≥F2 groups, therefore, less invasive procedure of liver biopsy is feasible. 2D-mode ultrasound scoring based on semi-quantitative analysis of ultrasound images is easy to obtain, and worth applying.

Key words: 2D-mode ultrasound, Ultrasound scoring, Hepatic fibrosis, Cirrhosis