Multi-organ quantitative MRI for the assessment of liver disease – A whole much more than the sum of its parts

Non-invasive assessment of liver disease remains a major challenge. Ultrasound derived biomechanical measurements (FibroScan ® and shear wave elastography) are widely used because of their relatively low cost and proximity to the bedside, but sample only small areas of the liver, and thus suffer the same sampling limitations as liver biopsy. MR based methods are inherently more comprehensive, sampling the whole organ, wi th the potential to assess tissue composition using T1 mapping,1 alongside accurate quantification of liver fat (proton-density fat fraction mapping)2 and liver iron (T2∗ mapping).

Source: Journal of Hepatology - September 15, 2018 Category: Gastroenterology Authors: Manil D. Chouhan, Stuart A. Taylor, Rajeshwar P. Mookerjee Tags: Editorial Source Type: research