Liver-specific magnetic resonance contrast medium in the evaluation of chronic liver disease

Abstract

The hepatobiliary-specific contrast medium (gadoxetic acid – Primovist®) is primarily used to improve detection and characterization of focal hepatic lesions, such as in chronic liver disease patients with suspected hepatocellular carcinoma. Since the contrast medium is selectively taken up by functioning hepatocytes in the late hepatobiliary phase, it helps to detect typical hepatocellular carcinoma, which show low signal intensity on this phase. This imaging feature also assists in differentiating regenerative/dysplastic nodules from early hepatocellular carcinomas (with over 90% accuracy), as well as hypervascular hepatocellular carcinomas from arterial pseudo-enhancement foci. Future perspectives include its use in quantification of hepatic function and fibrosis.

Analysis of Liver Tumors Using Preoperative and Intraoperative Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound (CEUS/IOCEUS) by Radiologists in Comparison to Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Histopathology

“…Modern crosssectional imaging methods, particularly MRI with liver-specific contrast agent, have greatly improved the detection and characterization of liver tumors even in our own workgroups [1,2], Numerous small lesions are visualized with MRI prior to surgery [2]. However, these lesions often require contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) for detection and characterization [3 -11], but CEUS only achieves high diagnostic accuracy when performed by an experienced examiner [12 -14].…”