Liver biopsy has long been the gold standard to stage fibrosis in the liver. In particular, liver biopsy has been used to evaluate patients with viral hepatitis (particularly those with hepatitis B virus [HBV] or hepatitis C virus [HCV] infection), to stage disease, and to determine whether treatment should be pursued. The disadvantages of biopsy are that it is an invasive test, it requires the patient to be hospitalized for half a day, it is expensive, and it is associated with certain risks, such as pain and bleeding. In addition, a liver biopsy samples only a very small piece of the liver, which can lead to incorrect staging if this sample is not representative of the rest of the liver.
Fibroscan is a non-invasive test that helps assess the liver. The Fibroscan device (Echosens) works by measuring shear wave velocity. In this technique, a 50-MHz wave is passed into the liver from a small transducer on the end of an ultrasound probe. It measures fibrosis (scarring) and steatosis (fatty change) in liver. Fatty change is when fat builds up in your liver cells.
FibroScan will help doctor to assess fibrosis and scarring in liver and also look for changes following treatment. It is usually used along with other tests (such as blood tests, imaging scans, or biopsies) that also measure scarring or fatty change in your liver.CAP score is a measurement of fatty change in your liver. The CAP score is measured in decibels per meter (dB/m). It ranges from 100 to 400 dB/m