Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38517204›Full record

ArticleHepatology communications2024

Velacur ACE outperforms FibroScan CAP for diagnosis of MASLD.

Rohit Loomba, Alnoor Ramji, Tarek Hassanein, Eric M Yoshida, Emily Pang, Caitlin Schneider, Michael P Curry, Nezam H Afdhal

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Hepatology communications, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
2.7field-weighted citation impact, top 10% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Identification of Hepatic Fibrosis and Steatosis via A Point-of-Care Transient Elastography System With Integrated AI.Liver international : official journal of the International Association for the Study of the Liver · 2026
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.

Rohit LoombaNAFLD Research Center, Division of Gastroenterology, Department of Medicine.ORCID 0000-0002-4845-9991
Alnoor RamjiDivision of Gastroenterology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.ORCID 0000-0003-4059-8767
Tarek HassaneinSouthern California Research Center, Coronado, California, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-9157-0329
Eric M YoshidaDivision of Gastroenterology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.ORCID 0000-0003-2910-7461
Emily PangDepartment of Radiology, Vancouver General Hospital, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.ORCID 0000-0003-4769-3433
Caitlin SchneiderSonic Incytes Medical Corp., Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.ORCID 0000-0001-6649-3790
Michael P CurryDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-2110-3503
Nezam H AfdhalDivision of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-7342-6593
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center · USUniversity of British Columbia · CASouthern California Reproductive Center · USVancouver General Hospital · CA

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAs the prevalence of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease increases, it is imperative to have noninvasive alternatives to liver biopsy. Velacur offers a non-invasive, point-of-care ultrasound-based method for the assessment of liver stiffness and attenuation. The aim of this study was to perform a head-to-head comparison of liver stiffness and liver fat determined by Velacur and FibroScan using MRI-based measurements as the reference standard.

methodsThis prospective cross-sectional study included 164 adult participants with well-characterized metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease. Patients underwent a research exam including Velacur, FibroScan and contemporaneous magnetic resonance elastography, and magnetic resonance imaging proton density fat fraction (MRI-PDFF) scans. The primary outcome was the presence of advanced fibrosis (>F2) as measured by magnetic resonance elastography and the presence of liver fat (>5%) as measured by MRI-PDFF.

resultsThe mean age and body mass index were 57±12 years and 30.6±4.8 kg/m2, respectively. The mean liver stiffness on magnetic resonance elastography was 3.22±1.39 kPa and the mean liver fat on MRI-PDFF was 14.2±8%. The liver stiffness assessments by Velacur and FibroScan were similar for the detection of advanced fibrosis (AUC 0.95 vs. 0.97) and were not statistically different (p=0.43). Velacur was significantly better than FibroScan (AUC 0.94 vs. 0.79, p=0.01), for the detection of MRI-PDFF >5% (diagnosis of metabolic dysfunction-associated liver disease).

conclusionsVelacur was superior to FibroScan for liver fat detection with MRI-PDFF as the reference. Velacur and FibroScan were not statistically different for liver stiffness assessment as defined by magnetic resonance elastography.

Indexed as

Elasticity Imaging TechniquesNon-alcoholic Fatty Liver DiseaseAdultCross-Sectional StudiesFibrosisHumansProspective Studies

Identifiers

PMID38517204
PMCPMC10962894
OpenAlexW4393069584

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.