Intrahepatic portosystemic shunt in a young female: Views from a developing country

Abstract

A young female presented to us with abdominal distension along with pedal edema. She had no prior medical or surgical history apart from a caesarean section done a few years prior. Initial workup showed low hemoglobin, low serum albumin and slight raised ESR. Her LFTs were slightly deranged. Ultrasound abdomen had evidence of portal hypertension along with splenomegaly. While ultrasound hepatic Doppler revealed a portosystemic shunt between the portal vein and the left hepatic vein, with a shunt ratio of 7.1%. CT scan abdomen confirmed these findings and a diagnosis of Type III intrahepatic portosystemic shunt and spleno-renal shunt was made. Since the patient was currently asymptomatic, she was advised regular follow-ups and was managed conservatively.