Single Breath-Hold 3-Dimensional Magnetic Resonance Elastography Depicts Liver Fibrosis and Inflammation in Obese Patients

• Published in: Investigative radiology Vol. 58; no. 6; p. 413
• Main Authors: Darwish, Omar Isam, Gharib, Ahmed M, Jeljeli, Sami, Metwalli, Nader S, Feeley, Jenna, Rotman, Yaron, Brown, Rebecca J, Ouwerkerk, Ronald, Kleiner, David E, Stäb, Daniel, Speier, Peter, Sinkus, Ralph, Neji, Radhouene
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.06.2023
• Subjects: Elasticity Imaging Techniques - methods; Female; Humans; Inflammation - diagnostic imaging; Inflammation - pathology; Liver - diagnostic imaging; Liver - pathology; Liver Cirrhosis - diagnostic imaging; Liver Cirrhosis - pathology; Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods; Male; Obesity - complications; Obesity - pathology; Reproducibility of Results
• ISSN: 1536-0210
• DOI: 10.1097/RLI.0000000000000952

Three-dimensional (3D) magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) measures liver fibrosis and inflammation but requires several breath-holds that hamper clinical acceptance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the technical and clinical feasibility of a single breath-hold 3D MRE sequence as a means of measuring liver fibrosis and inflammation in obese patients. From November 2020 to December 2021, subjects were prospectively enrolled and divided into 2 groups. Group 1 included healthy volunteers (n = 10) who served as controls to compare the single breath-hold 3D MRE sequence with a multiple-breath-hold 3D MRE sequence. Group 2 included liver patients (n = 10) who served as participants to evaluate the clinical feasibility of the single breath-hold 3D MRE sequence in measuring liver fibrosis and inflammation. Controls and participants were scanned at 60 Hz mechanical excitation with the single breath-hold 3D MRE sequence to retrieve the magnitude of the complex-valued shear modulus (|G*| [kPa]), the shear wave speed (Cs [m/s]), and the loss modulus (G" [kPa]). The controls were also scanned with a multiple-breath-hold 3D MRE sequence for comparison, and the participants had histopathology (Ishak scores) for correlation with Cs and G". For the 10 controls, 5 were female, and the mean age and body mass index were 33.1 ± 9.5 years and 23.0 ± 2.1 kg/m 2 , respectively. For the 10 participants, 8 were female, and the mean age and body mass index were 45.1 ± 16.5 years and 33.1 ± 4.0 kg/m 2 (obese range), respectively. All participants were suspected of having nonalcoholic fatty liver disease. Bland-Altman analysis of the comparison in controls shows there are nonsignificant differences in |G*|, Cs, and G" below 6.5%, suggesting good consensus between the 2 sequences. For the participants, Cs and G" correlated significantly with Ishak fibrosis and inflammation grades, respectively ( ρ = 0.95, P < 0.001, and ρ = 0.84, P = 0.002). The single breath-hold 3D MRE sequence may be effective in measuring liver fibrosis and inflammation in obese patients.