Dynamic Changes in Portal Vein Flow in Decongestion of Patients With Heart Failure and Cardio-Renal Syndrome

Hospitalizations from heart failure have been shown to be preceded by a gradual increase in cardiac filling pressures using invasive ambulatory monitoring measurements [1, 2]., this technique does not directly assess congestion. The use of point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) to evaluate lung congestion has been shown to decrease decompensations and urgent heart failure visits [3, 4]. However, besides lung congestion, the abdominal compartment contributes significantly to deranged cardiac as well as renal function in congestive heart failure (CHF) [5].There is increasing recognition that worsening renal function in CHF is related to altered renal blood flow [6, 7]. Recently, alterations in renal venous flow (IRVF) assessed by Doppler imaging have been associated with worse outcomes in patients with CHF [8, 9]. Besides IRVF alterations, portal vein flow (PVF) alterations have been proposed as a marker of venous congestion and right ventricular dysfunction [10, 11]. PVF and IRVF alterations have been shown to correlate with each other and were independently associated with the development of subsequent acute kidney injury (AKI) in patients undergoing cardiac surgery [12, 13]. Portal vein (PV) Doppler is easily obtainable and less time consuming than intra renal venous Doppler. Given the potential usefulness of evaluating venous congestion via POCUS of PVF, we decided to study the dynamic changes that occur during decongestion in patients presenting with heart failure to the emergency department Optimal method for noninvasive assessment of venous congestion remains an unresolved issue. Portal vein (PV) and intra renal venous flow alterations are markers of abdominal venous congestion and have been associated with acute kidney injury (AKI) in cardiac surgery patients. It is currently unknown if portal vein flow (PVF) alterations in heart failure can be reversed with diuretic treatment and track decongestion