Necro-inflammatory activity grading in chronic viral hepatitis with three-dimensional multifrequency MR elastography

Area of Science:

• Hepatology
• Medical Imaging
• Biophysics

Background:

• Chronic viral hepatitis (HCV, HBV) leads to liver damage.
• Accurate grading of necro-inflammation is crucial for treatment decisions.
• Non-invasive methods for assessing liver inflammation are needed.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the diagnostic capability of multifrequency MR elastography for grading liver necro-inflammation.
• To compare multifrequency MR elastography parameters with established markers of liver disease.

Main Methods:

• Fifty participants with chronic hepatitis B or C underwent multifrequency MR elastography.
• Measurement of storage, shear, loss moduli, and damping ratio at 56 Hz.
• Calculation of the multifrequency wave dispersion coefficient and comparison with necro-inflammation and fibrosis markers.

Main Results:

• The multifrequency dispersion coefficient was solely determined by necro-inflammation.
• Storage, loss, and shear moduli were determined by fibrosis.
• The multifrequency dispersion coefficient showed high accuracy for necro-inflammatory activity (AUC 0.84).
• Storage modulus demonstrated high accuracy for fibrosis (AUC 0.91) and cirrhosis (AUC 0.97).

Conclusions:

• Multifrequency MR elastography, specifically the dispersion coefficient, shows significant potential for grading liver necro-inflammation non-invasively.
• This technique may aid in managing patients with chronic viral hepatitis.