• P Heim, P Steiner, V Schoder, C Dieckmann, R Kuhlencordt, and G Adam.
• Radiologisches Zentrum, Klinik und Poliklinik für Diagnostische und Interventionelle Radiologie, Universitätsklinikum Hamburg-Eppendorf. heim@uke.uni-hamburg.de
• Rofo. 2003 Oct 1; 175 (10): 1376-83.

PurposeDetection of malignant liver lesions with gadolinium-enhanced volumetric interpolated breath-hold examination (VIBE) in comparison with SPIO-enhanced MRT (four different SPIO-enhanced T2w sequences) and histological and imaging follow-up in non-cirrhotic livers at 1.5 T.Patients And MethodsTwenty-two patients with suspected focal liver lesions prospectively underwent a gadolinium-enhanced 3D VIBE. Four T2w sequences (HASTE sequence, fast spin-echo-sequence with and without fat-saturation, FLASH 2D gradient echo-sequence) after administration of superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO) served as gold standard combined with histological work-up in 17 patients and histological and imaging follow-up in five patients. The image quality was evaluated and the detectability of intrahepatic lesions was rated by the alternative free-response receiver operating characteristic (AFROC) analysis. In addition, the contrast-to-noise ratio was compared.ResultsAltogether 49 malignant and 35 benign liver lesions were found. Concerning the image quality, VIBE turned out to be of slightly poorer image quality than the SPIO-enhanced examination with HASTE sequence (4.95 vs. 5.0). The fast spin-echo-sequence without fat-saturation demonstrated the highest contrast-to-noise ratio. All sequences showed a comparable certainty in detecting lesion (area under the curve 0.68-0.73) and identifying malignant liver lesions.ConclusionDespite the small number of patients, VIBE seems to be a comparable, inexpensive and fast method in diagnosing malignant liver lesions.

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