Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2025 Jul 11;15(14):1754.
doi: 10.3390/diagnostics15141754.

Overall Survival and Complication Rates in the Treatment of Liver Carcinoma: A Comparative Study of Ultrasound, Computed Tomography, and Combined Ultrasound and Computed Tomography Guidance for Radiofrequency Ablation

Chia-Hsien Chien  1 , Chia-Ling Chiang  2 , Huei-Lung Liang  3 , Jer-Shyung Huang  2 , Chia-Jung Tsai  4
Affiliations

Overall Survival and Complication Rates in the Treatment of Liver Carcinoma: A Comparative Study of Ultrasound, Computed Tomography, and Combined Ultrasound and Computed Tomography Guidance for Radiofrequency Ablation

Chia-Hsien Chien et al. Diagnostics (Basel). .

Abstract

Background: Liver cancer is a major health concern worldwide. Radiofrequency ablation is a safe treatment option that can be guided by either ultrasound, computer tomography (CT), or fluoroscopy. Although ultrasound-guided radiofrequency ablation is commonly used in clinical practice, radiofrequency ablation guided by CT is more precise but requires more time and does not offer real-time monitoring, which may result in complications such as pneumothorax or organ damage. Objectives: In this study, we investigated the effect of ultrasound, CT, and combined ultrasound/CT guidance on patient survival and complication development. Methods: A total of 982 radiofrequency ablation sessions conducted on 553 patients were analyzed. Clinical outcomes were assessed during follow-up to determine the survival and recurrence rates of malignant tumors. Results: Overall, the three guidance approaches exhibited significant differences in terms of tumor size, number, complication development, and treatment duration. However, no significant differences were observed in survival rate. A comparison of the effect of CT guidance and ultrasound guidance on complication development revealed a higher odds ratio for CT guidance in some cases. A comparison of combined ultrasound/CT guidance and ultrasound guidance revealed nonsignificant differences in complication development. A comparison of CT guidance and combined ultrasound/CT guidance revealed a higher odds ratio for CT guidance in some cases. Radiofrequency ablation is a safe and effective treatment for liver tumors. However, CT has an increased incidence of complications. Conclusions: Combined ultrasound/computer tomography guidance is recommended for patients with multiple or large tumors or tumors near the hepatic dome or diaphragm.

Keywords: CT-guided; HCC; US-guided; US/CT-guided; radiofrequency ablation.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Survival rates of patients who received RFA treatment with USG, CTG, and CT/US-G.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

References

    1. Cha D.I., Lee M.W., Hyun D., Ahn S.H., Jeong W.K., Rhim H. Combined transarterial chemoembolization and radiofrequency ablation for hepatocellular carcinoma infeasible for ultrasound-guided percutaneous radiofrequency ablation: A comparative study with general ultrasound-guided radiofrequency ablation outcomes. Cancers. 2023;15:5193. doi: 10.3390/cancers15215193. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Lee L.H., Hwang J.I., Cheng Y.C., Wu C.Y., Lee S.W., Yang S.S., Yeh H.Z., Chang C.S., Lee T.Y. Comparable outcomes of ultrasound versus computed tomography in the guidance of radiofrequency ablation for hepatocellular carcinoma. PLoS ONE. 2017;12:e0169655. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0169655. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Huo J., Aloia T.A., Xu Y., Chung T.H., Sheu T., Shih Y.C.T. Comparative effectiveness of CT- vs. ultrasound-guided percutaneous radiofrequency ablation among medicare patients 65 years of age or older with hepatocellular carcinoma. Value Health. 2018;22:284–292. doi: 10.1016/j.jval.2018.10.004. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Ding H., Su M., Zhu C., Wang L., Zheng Q., Wan Y. CT-guided versus laparoscopic radiofrequency ablation in recurrent small hepatocellular carcinoma against the diaphragmatic dome. Sci. Rep. 2017;7:44583. doi: 10.1038/srep44583. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Hsieh M.F., Chen C.B., Chen Y.L., Chou C.T. Hemobilia after CT-guided radiofrequency ablation of liver tumors: Frequency, risk factors, and clinical significance. Abdom. Radiol. 2019;44:337–345. doi: 10.1007/s00261-018-1693-y. - DOI - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources