Portal Vein Embolization: Efficacy, Methodology, and Alternatives.

Portal vein embolization (PVE) is a minimally invasive intervention that has become the standard of care in preoperative liver augmentation for patients undergoing extended hepatic resections for primary and secondary liver cancers. PVE provides permanent and complete occlusion of the portal venous inflow to diseased hepatic segments, re-directing portal flow to the future liver remnant and inducing hypertrophy sufficient to proceed to major hepatectomy. The aim of this review is to discuss the methods of identifying an insufficient future liver remnant, technical considerations for performing effective PVE, and the alternative/adjunctive measures for PVE.