Surgical porto-syitemic shurlt is usually performed in patients who have bled from esophageal varices, Patency of the shunt generally prevents further bleeding; whereas, thrombosis exposes the patients to the risk of renewed and often life-threetening hemorrhage. Asaessment of shunt patency is therefore imyortant in the follow up of these patiensts. We asseased patency of squgical parto-aystemic shunts in five patients using Doppler ultrasonography. Of the five, one patient received a side-to-side partacaval shunt operation, one an end-to-side portacval Shunt,one a graft-interpoaitioning mesocaval shunt and two patients received a distal spIenarenal (Warren) shunt operation. In all patients, flow signal through the shunt was detected by Doppler ultrasonography. Four of five patent shuts were directly seen. In three patients color Doppler ultrasonography was performed and color flow eignals were detected, In one patients, who received side-to-side portacaval shunt operation, and another, who received graft-interpositioning mesocaval shunt operation, the flow signal of the portal vein showed reve direction of flow and a phasic pattern influenced by cardiac pulsativn, which was similar with the flow signaI of inferior vena cava. We concluded that Doppler ultraeonogrephy is a simple, noninvasive and very useful procedure to assess the pitecy of photo-systemic shunt.