Grey-scale ultrasonography of portal vein.

The state of the extrahepatic portal venous system was correctly assessed by grey-scale ultrasonography in twenty-one patients with extrahepatic portal-vein obstruction and the results agreed with those obtained by portal venography. In twenty-two age-matched controls a patent portal vein was displayed. The diameter of the portal vein on the ultrasound scan was significantly less in the twenty-two controls than in eighteen patients with chronic liver disease. Grey-scale ultrasonography is a reliable, inexpensive, and non-invasive method for diagnosing extrahepatic portal-vein obstruction.