Health care technology article on fibroscan

After reading this article it states the benefits of having this procedure done are same results as a liver biopsy UT the only difference, is that they are painless and non-invasive. They also claim that they have immediate results for the physician and patients and if offers a better chance at detecting cirrhosis and fibrosis than the liver biopsy because of the ability to repeatedly test without adverse effects.

The Article also explains what exactly happens in the Fibrosis’s exam, It involves lying down on your back with your right arm raised behind your head, A clinician the applies a water-based gel to your skin, then places the Fibrosis’s Probe on the chest with slight pressure. This machine then assesses the degree of liver fibrosis or the liver stiffness, The suffer the liver, the more likely that scaring exist, the exam approximately takes 5-10 minutes and of course provides immediate results.

Another interesting fact that came across as I did my research on this liver scan was that the U. S centers of disease control and prevention (CDC) recently recommended ” baby Boomers” (Individuals born from 1 945 – 1965) to be tested for Hepatitis C, An infectious disease that Primary affects the liver, Dry. Kowtowed one of the Virginia mason Doctors involved with this technology explained that their usage of the Fibrosis’s was particularly timely as they were on the brink of an enormous Increase In the number of patients that were or are diagnosed with Hepatitis C.

The French company ” Chosen” Fibrosis’s is also used in companies like Japan, china, Canada and approximately 70 other countries initially introduced the Fibrosis’s in Europe in 2003, the Food and Drug Administration approved It In the United States In 2013. The advantages of Fibrosis’s compared to Liver biopsy includes the gold standard to stage fibrosis in the liver. The liver biopsy has been used to evaluate patients with viral hepatitis (particularly those with hepatitis B virus [HUB] or hepatitis C virus [HOC] Infection), to stage disease, and to determine whether treatment should be pursued.

The disadvantages of biopsy are that it is an invasive test, it requires the 1 OFF certain FIBROSIS’S risks, such as pain and bleeding. (While bleeding due to liver biopsy is uncommon, it poses a significant risk when it occurs. ) In addition, a liver biopsy samples only a very small piece of the liver, which can lead to incorrect staging if this sample which is tot representing of the rest of the liver. Thus, liver biopsy can lead to sampling error, which may result in either over staging or under staging of fibrosis; sampling error may occur in up to 25-30% of liver biopsies.

Another limitation of liver biopsy is that different pathologists can interpret the same sample differently, which can result in discrepancies, in liver disease staging. Given these limitations and patients’ desire to avoid invasive testing, researchers have done much work over the past 10 years to develop noninvasive tests that can measure liver fibrosis. Fibrosis’s is one such test, and it offers several advantages compared to liver biopsy. Because Fibrosis’s is a noninvasive test, it can be performed at the point of care, there is no pain, and sedation is not required.

Also, the test takes only 5? 7 minutes to perform, it is significantly less expensive than liver biopsy, and it has not been associated with any side effects. Finally, the results of the test are instantaneous so clinicians can use them to make decisions during patients’ visits. Fibrosis’s is a useful test in almost any patient in whom a clinician wishes to stage liver fibrosis. The main drawback of Fibrosis’s testing is that it cannot be performed in all patients.