Hepatic Sonographic findings at the Jos University Teaching Hospital, Nigeria

Background: Ultrasound examination is considered to be a very useful imaging modality for the diagnosis of hepatic diseases. Its major advantage is the avoidance of ionizing radiation exposure. However, it is operator dependent and less accurate when compared with Computed Tomography. The present study describes hepatic sonographic findings in patients referred to the radiology department for ultrasound examination based on clinical suspicion of liver disease. Methods: This observational descriptive study was conducted between June 2019 and April 2020 at Department of Radiology, Jos University Teaching Hospital, Jos, Nigeria. Two hundred and twenty seven patients with clinical features suggestive of hepatic disease and referred to the department for ultrasound examination were enrolled. Ultrasonography was done using a LOGIQ V duplex Doppler ultrasound machine with 3.5-5 MHz curvilinear transducer Results: The age of the patients ranged from 0 to above 60 years. Out of 227 patients studied, 48% were males and 52% were females. Decompensated chronic liver disease and chronic liver disease (CLD) dominated the indications for hepatic ultrasound scan with 23.3% and 19.4% respectively. The predominant pathological ultrasonic liver finding reported was chronic liver disease, accounting for up to 48% in frequency. This was followed by Hepatitis (16.3%) and Liver cirrhosis (13%). Conclusions: The various indications and findings of liver ultrasonographic evaluation have been established by this study with chronic liver disease being the commonest indication for sonographic evaluation of the liver as well as the commonest finding. Keywords: Hepatic, Jos, North-Central, Nigeria, ultrasoun