Comparison of Portal Vein Diameter in Pregnant and Non-pregnant Women in South-south Nigeria

Background: The hepatic artery is a branch of the coeliac trunk, and supplies 25% of the total blood flow to the liver, while the portal vein is formed by the mesenteric and splenic veins, and accounts for the remaining 75% of hepatic blood supply.

Objectives: To compare the portal vein diameter (PVD) in non-pregnant women with that of normal pregnant women, correlating it with age and parity.

Subjects and Methods: This comparative, cross-sectional study was conducted at all the clinical departments of the two tertiary health facilities, one secondary facility and one radiodiagnostic facility in Bayelsa State, South-South Nigeria, between April, 2022 and December, 2022. Data analysis was done using Statistical Product and Service Solutions for Windows® version 25, SPSS Inc.; Chicago, United States of America (USA). Descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, frequency, and percentages) and Pearson product moment correlation were used for the analysis. The level of significance was considered at p<0.05.

Results: The mean PVD was 10.4 ± 1.6 mm and 10.5 ± 2.0 mm, among gravid women and non-gravid women, respectively. Among gravid women, PVD ranged from 7.5 mm to 14.0 mm, while for non-gravid women, it ranged from 6.8 mm to 16.6 mm. There was no significant difference in mean PVD between the two study groups.

Conclusion: This research has established baseline normal values for normal range of PV diameter in healthy pregnant and non-pregnant women. It also revealed no correlation between PV diameter with age and parity of the women.