Characteristics of cerebral hemodynamics in patients with chronic HBV- and HCV-associated hepatitis

Abstract

Objective. To study the characteristics of cerebral hemodynamics in patients with chronic viral hepatitis (CVH) associated with HBV (CVHB) and HCV (CVHC) infection. Subjects and methods. The investigation involved 69 patients with CVHB and 71 patients with CVHC. The control group consisted of 50 apparently healthy individuals compared with the sex- and age-matched study group. All the patients underwent extracranial Doppler imaging of the common, internal carotid and vertebral arteries, as well as transcranial Doppler ultrasound of blood flow in the area of the M1 segment of the middle cerebral artery using a Vivid-7 (GE) ultrasound machine. Results. The patients with CVH showed remodeling of the vascular bed in the cerebral arteries: great vessel lumen expansion, decreased blood flow velocity in the carotid basin and middle cerebral artery, as well as reduced elasticity and increased stiffness of the vascular wall.