Hepatic hemangiomas: evaluation by magnetic resonance imaging and technetium-99m red blood cell scintigraphy

A study was performed to evaluate and compare the sensitivity of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and radionuclide blood-pool scanning in the detection of hepatic hemangiomas. All patients had known hemangiomas which were first detected on either ultrasound or computed tomography. Sixteen patients with a total of 23 lesions were investigated. Eleven patients had both MRI and blood-pool scans performed. In the group studied by both modalities, 18 lesions were detected ranging in size from 1 to 11 cm. All lesions were detected by both techniques. However, two of the 18 lesions had an atypical appearance on MRI. Our experience to date indicates that the anatomic location and specific diagnosis of hemangiomas can be made with a high degree of certainty when both MRI and blood-pool scanning techniques are utilized.