Utility of gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase and liver Young′s modulus for differential diagnosis of biliary atresia and infant intrahepatic cholestasis / 中国小儿急救医学

ABSTRACT

Objective:In this study, the clinical data of biliary atresia(BA) and infant intrahepatic cholestasis(IHC) was reviewed, and the utility of gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase(GGT) and liver Young′s modulus in the differential diagnosis of BA and IHC in infants was discussed.Methods:Based on the clinical data of 120 infants with cholestasis treated in the Children′s Hospital Affiliated to Xi′an Jiaotong University, from September 2017 to December 2019, the infants were divided into two groups according to the results of intraoperative cholangiography and follow-up BA group( n=50); IHC group( n=70). The age, clinical manifestations, laboratory examination results, gallbladder contraction rate, hepatobiliary scintigraphy, liver Young′s modulus, and medical treatment effects were compared between the two groups.The utility of GGT and liver Young′s modulus in the differential diagnosis of BA and IHC was analyzed. Results:The age, alanine aminotransferase(ALT), aspartate aminotransferase(AST), total bile acid, fasting blood glucose, blood ammonia and splenomegaly between the two groups were compared and the results showed no statistical significance( P>0.05). In contrast, there were statistically significant differences( P<0.001) in stool color, liver size, total bilirubin(TB), direct bilirubin(DB), GGT, liver Young′s modulus, positive hepatobiliary scintigraphy, gallbladder contraction rate at 1 hour after meal, and medical treatment effect between the two groups.TB, DB, GGT, liver Young′s modulus and GGT combined with liver Young′s modulus were analyzed using ROC curves, and the area under the curve(AUC) were 0.820, 0.809, 0.906, 0.876 and 0.926, respectively.When GGT exceeded the cut-off value of 198.85 U/L, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy of BA were 82.0%, 84.3%, 78.8%, 86.8% and 83.3%, respectively.When liver Young′s modulus exceeded the cut-off value of 8.6 kPa, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy of BA were 88.0%, 80.0%, 75.9%, 90.3% and 83.3%, respectively.The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and accuracy of GGT combined with liver Young′s modulus in diagnosing BA were 98.0%, 68.6%, 69.0%, 98.0% and 80.8%, respectively.Multivariate logistic regression analysis found that DB>115.55 μmol/L, GGT>198.85 U/L, and liver Young′s modulus>8.6 kPa were risk factors for BA( OR=9.510, P=0.001; OR=24.634, P<0.001; OR=21.469, P<0.001). Conclusion:GGT and liver Young′s modulus are useful in the differential diagnosis of BA and IHC.If GGT and liver Young′s modulu sexceed the threshold values of 198.85 U/L and 8.6 kPa respectively, it can effectively indicate that the child is BA.