MR spectroscopy of the liver - a reliable non-invasive alternative for evaluating non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

MR spectroscopy of the liver - a reliable non-invasive alternative for evaluating non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Rom J Morphol Embryol. 2020;61(1):73-80 Authors: Lăpădat AM, Florescu LM, Manea NC, Gheonea DI, Pirici D, Tudoraşcu DR, Ene R, Gheonea IA Abstract Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is one of the most common conditions worldwide that targets the liver parenchyma. NAFLD represents an intrahepatic triglyceride accumulation in the absence of excessive alcohol consumption and other diseases that affect the liver parenchyma. The current "gold standard" for evaluating the amount of intrahepatic fat is represented by liver biopsy, but many patients are reluctant and hardly accept undergoing this procedure due to its invasive nature. The current study addresses this aspect by evaluating the reliability of liver magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) in diagnosing NAFLD, compared to the traditional invasive liver biopsy. The present study included a total of 38 patients based on several well-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria. We used the same NAFLD grading system for both liver MRS and liver biopsy: grade 0: <5% hepatocytes are affected; grade I: 5-33% hepatocytes are affected; grade II: 34-66% hepatocytes are affected; grade III: >66% hepatocytes are affected. Regarding the NAFLD grade, over three-quarters of patients were classified as grade I and grade II, with a strong predilection for men. The current...
Source: Romanian Journal of Morphology and Embryology - Category: General Medicine Tags: Rom J Morphol Embryol Source Type: research