Woo-Suk Chung, Presenter: Nothing to Disclose

Kyung Ah Kim MD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Mi-Suk Park MD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Sung Jun Ahn, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Myeong-Jin Kim MD, PhD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Jin-Young Choi, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Ki Whang Kim MD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

To quantify T1 relaxation times of liver and spleen before and after oxygen inhalation in patients with and without liver cirrhosis

Approval by the Institutional Review Board and written informed consent from all patients was obtained. 62 non-cirrhotic patients and 106 patients with liver cirrhosis (85 Child-Pugh class A and 21 Child-Pugh class B or C) underwent MR imaging at 3.0 T system before and after 100% oxygen inhalation at the rate of 15 L/min via non-breathing ventilation mask during 3 minutes. T1 maps were acquired using 3D spoiled gradient echo sequences with two different flip angles (2° and 14°) and fixed TR/TE (2.54 ms/0.95 ms). T1 values of liver and spleen were obtained using T1 processing tool (MapIt software, Siemens Medical Solutions, Erlangen, Germany) before and after oxygen inhalation. . Baseline T1 values and ΔT1 (T1pre-T1oxygen) was calculated and compared between three groups (control, Child-Pugh class A, Child-Pugh class B/C) using student t-test.

The mean T1 value of liver before oxygen inhalation was higher in non-cirrhotic patients (947.58) than that in cirrhotic (866.06), Child-Pugh A (876.20), and Child-Pugh B/C (825.024) patients with statistical significance (p= 0.002, 0.007, and 0.005, respectively. The mean Δ T1 value of liver before and after oxygen inhalation was higher in non-cirrhotic patients (52.673) than that in cirrhotic (17.649), Child-Pugh A (20.313), and Child-Pugh B/C (6.867) patients. The baseline T1 value and ΔT1 of spleen were lower in non-cirrhotic patients than those in cirrhotic patients (Child-Pugh A and B/C) without significance. After oxygen inhalation, T1 value of the liver and spleen was decreased in all of the patients.

Baseline T1 relaxation time of liver and T1 shortening effect of oxygen on liver were significantly different between the patients with and without liver cirrhosis.

Quantification of oxygen effects on T1 relaxation time has a potential to be a noninvasive alternative to liver biopsy for the diagnosis of liver cirrhosis.

Chung, W, Kim, K, Park, M, Ahn, S, Kim, M, Choi, J, Kim, K, Quantification of T1 Relaxation-time of Liver and Spleen before and after Oxygen Inhalation in Patients with and without Liver Cirrhosis.  Radiological Society of North America 2010 Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting, November 28 - December 3, 2010 ,Chicago IL. http://archive.rsna.org/2010/9014451.html