Overview of imaging in liver surgery

Area of Science:

• Hepatology and Surgical Oncology
• Medical Imaging Technologies

Background:

• Accurate liver imaging is crucial for surgical diagnostics, preoperative planning, and understanding patient-specific anatomy.
• Assessing liver parenchyma function is vital, with established guidelines for its indications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide an overview of current trends in liver imaging for surgical applications.
• To highlight advancements in preoperative and intraoperative imaging techniques.

Main Methods:

• Review of current literature on liver imaging modalities.
• Discussion of magnetic resonance imaging for liver remnant assessment.
• Exploration of fluorescent imaging with indocyanine green in minimally invasive surgery.

Main Results:

• Preoperative imaging aids in understanding liver anatomy and pathology extent.
• Magnetic resonance offers potential for evaluating future liver remnant volume and function.
• Intraoperative fluorescent imaging complements tactile perception and ultrasound in complex resections.

Conclusions:

• Continuous advancements in imaging are integral to liver surgery evolution.
• Emerging techniques like molecular imaging promise to overcome current imaging limitations.