Objective:

To evaluate the accuracy of liver stiffness measurement (LSM) compared with liver biopsy for assessing liver fibrosis in pediatric patients with portal vein thrombosis (PVT), highlighting the significance of this comparison.

Key Findings:

• 20 children were included, with 85% being male.
• Splenomegaly was present in 70% and hepatomegaly in 20% of patients.
• Hepatic fibrosis was absent in 25%, mild in 30%, and moderate in 45% of patients.
• FibroScan (TE) values showed strong association with fibrosis stage (AUROC 0.912), outperforming platelet count and liver function tests, indicating its potential as a primary assessment tool.
• Clinical features, including bleeding history, did not correlate with fibrosis stage, suggesting the need for further investigation.

Interpretation:

Platelet count and FibroScan (TE) may serve as useful indicators of hepatic fibrosis in children with PVT, with FibroScan (TE) being the strongest associated factor in this sample, potentially offering a non-invasive alternative to traditional methods.

Limitations:

• Small sample size of 20 children, which may limit the generalizability of findings.
• Retrospective design may limit the generalizability of findings.
• Potential selection bias in patient inclusion, impacting the study's conclusions.

Conclusion:

FibroScan (TE) is a reliable, non-invasive method for evaluating hepatic fibrosis in pediatric patients with portal vein thrombosis, with significant clinical implications for early diagnosis and management.