The accuracy of ultrasound in the detection of fatty infiltration of the liver.

The association of high-amplitude echoes returned from the liver in diffuse fatty infiltration has now become well recognized. We report our experience on the accuracy with which ultrasound will detect a fatty liver. A review was made of the liver ultrasound images in patients known to have either histologically normal livers or livers with fatty infiltration. Only two of 40 patients with normal liver biopsies had a brightly reflective echo pattern, but 12 of 20 patients with fatty infiltration showed this pattern. Of the patients with histologically moderate or severe fatty infiltration, nine out of ten had a brightly reflective echo pattern.