Esophageal varices are mainly caused by portal hypertension and are a common complication of chronic liver disease (CLD). In this study, we investigated the diagnostic relationship between liver stiffness (LS) and spleen stiffness (SS) measurement using elastography and their association with esophageal varices in cirrhotic patients.

One hundred twenty-five consecutive patients with liver cirrhosis were enrolled in this study between Sep 2017 and Aug 2019. All patients underwent upper gastrointestinal endoscopy to evaluate the presence and severity of esophageal varices. SS and LS measurements were performed for all liver and spleen elastography.

Aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), Platelet and AST-to-platelet ratio (APRI) levels were not significantly different between the two groups (p> 0.05). No significant difference was observed for LS in the two groups (p-value = 0.826). SS was significantly different in the two groups of patients with esophageal varices and those without l varices (p-value = 0.004).

Although there was a significant positive correlation between measurement of SS and LS (p-value <0.001), SS was not significantly associated with measurement of EV. SS is a relatively good predictor for EV.