Study of FibroScan to Detect Acute Heart Failure in Adults with Sudden Breathlessness in the Emergency Department

What this Trial Is About

Acute heart failure AHF is a common cause of sudden breathlessness in emergency departments, mainly caused by venous congestion that can lead to liver problems. Current tools to diagnose AHF, such as clinical exams, biomarkers, and imaging, often have delays, variability, or limited accuracy. Fibroscanae, a non-invasive device originally made to measure liver stiffness in chronic liver diseases, may help detect liver congestion related to heart failure and improve diagnostics in acute care. This study evaluates Fibroscanae for measuring liver stiffness in patients presenting with acute breathlessness in emergency settings. Participants will receive standard medical care including blood tests and imaging, and during their stay, will have a liver stiffness measurement using Fibroscanae without delaying treatment. Patients are followed until discharge or 28 days after admission. Participants will be monitored through their emergency department visit and hospital stay with liver stiffness measurements done before blood test and imaging results. Researchers will assess how well Fibroscanae measures liver stiffness to diagnose AHF and its association with clinical congestion scores. The main outcome is the accuracy of Fibroscanae 28 days after inclusion, with safety and standard care continuing throughout the study.

Evaluation of Fibroscan® Performance in Diagnosing Acute Heart Failure in Patients Presenting to the Emergency Department