Normal pancreatic volume assessment using abdominal computed tomography volumetry

Area of Science:

• Radiology
• Medical Imaging
• Anatomy

Background:

• Pancreatic volume (PV) is a key anatomical parameter.
• Accurate measurement of PV is essential for clinical assessment.
• Existing methods for PV estimation may have limitations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish normal ranges for pancreatic volume in Chinese adults via CT volumetry.
• To investigate correlations between PV and demographic/clinical factors.
• To evaluate the accuracy of formulas for PV calculation compared to manual segmentation.

Main Methods:

• Computed tomography (CT) volumetry was used to manually segment pancreatic volume in 240 Chinese adults (18-79 years).
• Patients were grouped by decade of age.
• Two formulas (PV* and PV#) were employed for comparative calculation.

Main Results:

• The mean pancreatic volume was 77.44 ± 19.11 cm³ (range: 28.55-138.15 cm³).
• PV showed significant positive correlations with height, weight, BMI, and abdominal diameters; a negative correlation with age was observed.
• Formula-based PV calculations showed moderate (PV*: r=0.676) to weak (PV#: r=0.376) correlations with manual segmentation.

Conclusions:

• Pancreatic volume in Chinese adults is influenced by demographics and anthropometric measurements.
• Current formulas for estimating PV require further refinement for improved accuracy.
• Future research should focus on developing more precise and simpler methods for PV assessment.