摘要
Patients who are chronically infected with the hepatitis C virus often develop chronic liver disease and assessment of the severity of liver injury is required prior to considering viral eradication therapy. This article examines the various assessment methods currently available from gold standard liver biopsy to serological markers and imaging. Ultrasound is one of the most widely used imaging modalities in clinical practice and is already a first-line diagnostic tool for liver disease. Microbubble ultrasound contrast agents allow higher resolution images to be obtained and functional assessments of microvascular change to be carried out. The role of these agents in quantifying the state of hepatic injury is discussed as a viable method of determining the stage and grade of liver disease in patients with hepatitis C. Although currently confined to specialist centres, the availability of microbubble contrast-enhanced ultrasound will inevitably increase in the clinical setting.
长期地感染丙肝病毒的病人经常得长期的肝疾病，对肝损伤的严厉的评价在认为病毒的根除是治疗以前被要求。这篇文章检验从标准答案肝活体检视当前可得到的各种各样的评价方法到血清学的标记和成像。超声是在临床的实践的最广泛地使用的成像形式之一并且已经是为肝疾病的一个首要的诊断工具。Microbubble 超声对比代理人允许更高的分辨率要获得的图象和对要执行的微脉管的变化的功能的评价。在确定的这些代理人的角色肝的损害的状态作为与丙肝在病人决定肝疾病的阶段和等级的一个可行方法被讨论。尽管当前限制了到专家中心，提高对比的超声将不可避免地在临床的背景增加的微水泡的可获得性。
基金
the United Kingdom Department of Health, British Medical Research Council, Grant No. G99000178 and the United Kingdom National Health Service Research and Development Initiative
