Paediatric MRCP: 10 year experience with 195 patients

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Radiology
• Gastroenterology
• Diagnostic Imaging

Background:

• Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) is increasingly used for adult biliary tree evaluation.
• Its routine use in pediatric populations remains under investigation despite promising smaller studies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the diagnostic utility and effectiveness of MRCP in a large cohort of pediatric patients.
• To evaluate MRCP's accuracy in diagnosing various pediatric biliary conditions.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective review of all pediatric MRCP examinations for diagnostic quality and diagnoses.
• Correlation of MRCP findings with direct cholangiography (DC), histopathology, and clinical diagnoses.
• Specific analysis for patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC).

Main Results:

• 219 out of 245 (89%) pediatric MRCPs were diagnostic.
• 100% concordance between MRCP and DC when both were performed (16 cases).
• MRCP demonstrated 89% sensitivity for detecting primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC).

Conclusions:

• MRCP is a reliable and valuable diagnostic tool for pediatric patients.
• The imaging quality is sufficient for diagnosing conditions like PSC, post-transplant strictures, and choledochal cysts.
• MRCP shows good correlation with clinical diagnoses in the pediatric population.