EVALUATING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HEPATIC ARTERY BUFFER RESPONSE AND HEPATITIS B/C IN CHRONIC LIVER DISEASE PATIENTS

Abstract

Hepatic artery buffer response (HABR) is the compensatory increase in hepatic arterial flow that occurs when portal venous flow decreases, helping maintain liver perfusion in chronic liver disease. The aim of this study was to compare portal-vein and hepatic-artery Doppler parameters between patients with HBV- and HCV-related chronic liver disease and to evaluate these parameters as indirect markers of portal–arterial haemodynamic adaptation related to HABR. A cross-sectional analytical study included 60 chronic liver disease patients at Farooq Hospital, Lahore. Participants were selected through non-probability sampling and examined using abdominal Doppler ultrasonography. Portal vein diameter, portal vein mean flow velocity, hepatic artery peak systolic velocity (PSV), end-diastolic velocity (EDV), resistive index (RI), and pulsatility index (PI) were recorded. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, independent-samples t-tests, and Pearson correlation. HCV patients had lower portal vein flow velocity than HBV patients (14.94 vs 16.80 cm/s) but higher hepatic artery PSV (49.01 vs 44.52 cm/s), RI (0.72 vs 0.66), and PI (1.37 vs 1.23). Significant differences were found for portal vein velocity (p = 0.026), PSV (p = 0.044), RI (p = 0.005), and PI (p = 0.014), whereas EDV was non-significant (p = 0.367). Portal vein velocity was negatively correlated with PSV (r = −0.463), RI (r = −0.512), and PI (r = −0.421). HCV patients demonstrated greater portal–arterial hemodynamic alteration than HBV patients. Doppler ultrasonography may support the non-invasive assessment of HABR in chronic viral liver disease.