Effect of gadolinium on hepatic fat quantification using multi-echo reconstruction technique with T2* correction and...

Area of Science:

• Radiology and Imaging Science
• Medical Physics
• Hepatology

Background:

• Accurate hepatic fat quantification is crucial for diagnosing and monitoring fatty liver disease.
• Gadolinium-based contrast agents are commonly used in MRI, but their potential impact on quantitative imaging needs evaluation.
• Multiecho T2* corrected techniques offer robust fat fraction (FF) measurement.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the effect of gadolinium administration on hepatic fat quantification using a multiecho T2* corrected MRI sequence.
• To determine the stability and reliability of fat fraction measurements before and after contrast administration.
• To evaluate the potential for integrating this technique into contrast-enhanced MRI protocols.

Main Methods:

• Forty-eight patients underwent a 3.0T MRI sequence for hepatic fat quantification.
• Imaging was performed once before and twice after gadolinium administration (0.1 mmol/kg).
• One-way repeated-measures ANOVA and Bland-Altman analysis were used to evaluate FF and R2* measurements.

Main Results:

• Hepatic fat fraction (FF) measurements showed no significant systematic bias between pre- and post-contrast acquisitions.
• Excellent agreement was observed for FF measurements between pre- and post-contrast scans.
• R2* values increased significantly in the liver and spleen after gadolinium administration (P < 0.05).

Conclusions:

• Hepatic fat quantification remains stable and reliable after gadolinium administration, despite increased R2*.
• The investigational IDEAL-based sequence can be integrated into tri-phase liver MRI without increasing scan time.
• This approach optimizes MRI protocols, enhances examination efficiency, and provides a valuable backup for pre-contrast FF measurements.