High-intensity focused ultrasound for the treatment of portal vein thrombus

Objective To study the efficacy,safety and clinical value of high-intensity focused ultrasound(HIFU) for the treatment of portal vein benign thrombus and tumor thrombus.Methods The portal vein thrombi in a total of 43 patients with advanced primary liver carcinoma and a sum of 4 patients with no evidence of cancer,were treated with HIFU.Results Color flow signals showing recanalization were seen in all of the 4 patients with benign portal thrombi.But in the group of malignant thrombus,improved blood flow to certain extents was seen in 70% of the cancer patients,slight-to-moderate changes in 15%,no change at all in another 15%.The increase of KPS scores of the 43 cancer patients averaged 10 points.There was alleviation of ascites in 6 patients and improvement of liver function in 30 patients.Conclusion HIFU is the treatment of choice for both benign and malignant thrombi in the portal vein.