[Ultrasonics in the monitoring of portasystemic anastomoses]. / L'échographie dans le contrôle des anastomoses porto-systémiques.

Mortality due to recurrent variceal esophageal bleeding secondary to portosystemic shunt thrombosis is high. Early diagnosis of shunt thrombosis is therefore necessary. For these reasons, patients who have undergone a portal diversion must be controlled periodically. To this end, frequent controls, using reliable, riskless and inexpensive methods are needed. In this work, 34 patients who underwent different types of portal systemic shunts were studied by ultrasonography. Diagnosis by ultrasonography (confirmed by radiography showing esophageal varices and sometimes by arteriography) was positive with direct vision of the anastomosis in 65 p. 100 of cases and with indirect signs of patency or thrombosis of the anastomosis in 32 p. 100 of cases. This method failed to conclude in 3 p. 100 of our cases.