Gallbladder Scalloping, Mammillated Caudate Lobe, and Inferior Vena Cava Scalloping: Three Novel Ultrasound Signs of Cirrhosis

Abstract

Purpose: We aimed to present three new ultrasound signs-gallbladder scalloping, mammillated caudate lobe, and inferior vena cava scalloping-and determine their accuracy in diagnosing liver cirrhosis.

Materials and methods: A total of 201 consecutive patients with a history of chronic liver disease who had undergone ultrasound imaging and liver biopsy were identified. A senior ultrasound radiologist blindly reviewed the ultrasound examinations. Specificity, sensitivity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of diagnosing cirrhosis were calculated for all evaluated ultrasound signs and selected combinations of signs, using the liver biopsy results as the reference standard.

Results: Of the 201 patients, 152 (76%) had either pathology-proven cirrhosis or significant fibrosis. Caudate lobe hypertrophy was the most specific (88%) and most positive predictor (90%) for cirrhosis, whereas mammillated caudate lobe was the most sensitive (78%). Inferior vena cava scalloping was the most specific (78%) of the three proposed ultrasound signs. When signs were combined, the presence of either gallbladder scalloping or liver surface nodularity was highly sensitive for cirrhosis (87%), whereas the presence of either gallbladder scalloping or inferior vena cava scalloping with caudate lobe hypertrophy was highly specific (93%).

Conclusions: Gallbladder scalloping, mammillated caudate lobe, and inferior vena cava scalloping are three novel signs that improve the accuracy of ultrasound in diagnosing cirrhosis.

Keywords: Liver cirrhosis/diagnosis; sensitivity and specificity; ultrasonography.