Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) imaging in Wilson disease

Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) scans of the head and liver were obtained in 13 patients with Wilson disease, and the results were compared with computed tomography (CT). Twelve age and sex matched normal controls were also scanned with NMR. The subjects were scanned using repeated free induction decay (RFID), inversion-recovery (IR), and spin-echo (SE) sequences. The IR scans of the brain provided excellent anatomical localisation while SE scans highlighted pathological areas. Within the brain, NMR demonstrated abnormalities in two patients with normal CT scans. More extensive involvement was shown with NMR in three additional cases. In the liver, NMR and CT showed similar abnormalities of morphology. T1 values were within the normal range in all cases, including three patients with high liver copper levels at the time of NMR examination.