Trace element content of the liver and the serum in patients with different liver US attenuation

Introduction: It was proved previously that low attenuation (DI) type bright livers show connective tissue dominance, while high attenuation (DII) type bright livers are associated with lipid deposition dominance. It was also demonstrated, that there is a trend of higher concentration of certain elements in the liver in some liver pathologies. The most important finding was that Ni concentration was extremely high in DII type bright livers.

Purpose: It was studied that trace element, especially the Ni content of the liver and the serum of the same patients are similar or differing from each other.

Material and methods: US scanning was made by a B-K Medical Hawk 2102 EXL scanner. Attenuation was measured with the aid of a homogeneous tissue equivalent reference phantom. Element analysis of 53 liver biopsy materials and till now 21 serums of the same patients was examined by total reflexion X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (TXRF) method. Semiquantitative histopathological evaluation of connective tissue and lipid content, as well as of inflammation reaction was also done.

Results: Serum Ni concentrations of all 21 patients, including 14 of DII type bright livers studied were under the detection limit, in sharp contrast with the behaviour of the liver tissue Ni content of the latters. The serum Ni concentrations were completely independent from the liver US attenuation and the semiquantitatively determined lipid and connective tissue content of the liver.

Conclusion: It is concluded, that in patients with fatty liver no correlation exists between the Ni concentration of the serum and the liver, thus accumulation of NI in the liver occurs without elevation of its serum concentration. Further determinations of NI concentrations in the liver and serum of more patients and also with other analytical methods are in progress.