Detection and characterization of liver metastases: 16--slice multidetector computed tomography versus superparamagnetic iron oxide-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging

Abstract

The aim of our study was to compare the diagnostic performance of 16--slice multidetector computed tomography with that of superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO)-enhanced magnetic resonance (MR) imaging in the detection of small hepatic metastases and in the differentiation of hepatic metastases from cysts. Twenty-three patients with 55 liver metastases and 14 liver cysts underwent SPIO-enhanced MR imaging and multiphasic CT using 16-MDCT. Two observers independently analyzed each image, in random order. Sensitivity and diagnostic accuracy for lesion detection and differentiation as metastases or cysts for MDCT and SPIO-enhanced MR imaging were calculated using receiver operating characteristic analysis. For all observers, the Az values of SPIO-enhanced MR imaging for lesion detection and differentiation of liver metastases from cysts (mean 0.955, 0.999) were higher than those of MDCT (mean 0.925, 0.982), but not statistically significantly so (P > 0.05). Sensitivity of SPIO-enhanced MR imaging with regard to the detection of liver metastases (mean 94.5%) was significantly higher than that of MDCT (mean 80.0%) (P < 0.05). SPIO-enhanced MR imaging and 16-MDCT showed similar diagnostic accuracies for detection and differentiation of liver metastases from cysts, but sensitivity of SPIO-enhanced imaging in the detection of liver metastases was superior to that of 16-MDCT.

Value of Retrospective Fusion of PET and MR Images in Detection of Hepatic Metastases: Comparison with 18F-FDG PET/CT and Gd-EOB-DTPA–Enhanced MRI

“…Rapid sequential imaging with gadolinium-based contrast agents in the extracellular space is superior to unenhanced imaging and helical CT for detecting metastatic liver disease (13). With the recent availability of hepatobiliary contrast medium with uptake into hepatocytes, the detectability and characterization of liver lesions and especially small liver metastases have further improved (14)(15)(16)(17)(18).…”

Detection of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Comparison of Gadoxetic Acid-Enhanced MRI, Diffusion-Weighted Imaging, and Combined Interpretation at 3 T MRI

“…Two im- . Three-dimensional GRE MRI using a hepatobiliary contrast agent provides thin sections with no gaps, high signal-to-noise ratio, and high sensitivity for detecting sub-centimeter-sized hepatocellular lesions (5,(36)(37)(38).…”

Review article liver metastases

“…Only a few studies compared MDCT and MRI regarding liver evaluation. It was demonstrated that MRI, either gadolinium-enhanced or with liverspecific SPIO contrast agents, demonstrates a higher diagnostic accuracy than MDCT for detection and characterization of focal liver lesions (30) (Figs. 10, 11).…”