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Impact of fat on the apparent T1 value of the liver: assessment by water-only derived T1 mapping

  • Gastrointestinal
  • Published:
European Radiology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

A Commentary to this article was published on 08 August 2023

Abstract

Objectives

To determine the impact of fat on the apparent T1 value of the liver using water-only derived T1 mapping.

Methods

3-T MRI included 2D Look-Locker T1 mapping and proton density fat fraction (PDFF) mapping. T1 values of the liver were compared among T1 maps obtained by in-phase (IP), opposed-phase (OP), and Dixon water sequences using paired t-test. The correlation between T1 values of the liver on each T1 map and PDFF was assessed using Spearman correlation coefficient. The absolute differences between T1 value of the liver on Dixon water images and that on IP or OP images were also correlated with PDFF.

Results

One hundred sixty-two patients (median age, 70 [range, 24–91] years, 90 men) were retrospectively evaluated. The T1 values of the liver on each T1 map were significantly different (p < 0.001). The T1 value of the liver on IP images was significantly negatively correlated with PDFF (r =  − 0.438), while the T1 value of the liver on OP images was slightly positively correlated with PDFF (r = 0.164). The T1 value of the liver on Dixon water images was slightly negatively correlated with PDFF (r =  − 0.171). The absolute differences between T1 value of the liver on Dixon water images and that on IP or OP images were significantly correlated with PDFF (r = 0.606, 0.722; p < 0.001).

Conclusion

Fat correction for the apparent T1 value by water-only derived T1 maps will be helpful for accurately evaluating the T1 value of the liver.

Clinical relevance statement

Fat-corrected T1 mapping of the liver with the water component only obtained from the 2D Dixon Look-Locker sequence could be useful for accurately evaluating the T1 value of the liver without the impact of fat in daily clinical practice.

Key Points

• The T1 values of the liver on the conventional T1 maps are significantly affected by the presence of fat.

• The apparent T1 value of the liver on water-only derived T1 maps would be slightly impacted by the presence of fat.

• Fat correction for the apparent T1 values is necessary for the accurate assessment of the T1 values of the liver.

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Abbreviations

2D:

Two-dimensional

FF:

Fat fraction

FOV:

Field of view

GRASP:

Golden-angle RAdial Sparse Parallel

IP:

In-phase

MRF:

Magnetic resonance fingerprinting

MRI:

Magnetic resonance imaging

NAFLD:

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

NASH:

Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis

OP:

Opposed-phase

PDFF:

Proton density fat fraction

ROIs:

Regions of interest

TE:

Echo time

TR:

Repetition time

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Funding

The authors state that this work has not received any funding.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine, 1-1-1 Minami-Kogushi, Ube, Yamaguchi, 755-8505, Japan

    Mayumi Higashi, Masahiro Tanabe & Katsuyoshi Ito

  2. Department of Radiological Technology, Yamaguchi University Hospital, Yamaguchi, Japan

    Masatoshi Yamane & Teppei Yonezawa

  3. MR R&D Collaborations, Siemens Medical Solutions USA Inc, New York, NY, USA

    Mahesh B. Keerthivasan

  4. MR Research and Collaboration, Siemens Healthcare K.K., Tokyo, Japan

    Hiroshi Imai

  5. Department of Organ Anatomy & NANOMEDICINE, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine, Yamaguchi, Japan

    Michihiro Nakamura

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  1. Mayumi Higashi
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Correspondence to Mayumi Higashi.

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The scientific guarantor of this publication is Katsuyoshi Ito.

Conflict of interest

Two authors (M.K., H.I.) were employees of Siemens Healthcare, but the other authors, who are not Siemens Healthcare employees, had control of inclusion of any data and information. The other authors of this manuscript declare no relationships with any companies, whose products or services may be related to the subject matter of the article.

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No complex statistical methods were necessary for this paper.

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Written informed consent was waived by the institutional review board.

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• Retrospective

• Observational

• Performed at one institution

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Higashi, M., Tanabe, M., Yamane, M. et al. Impact of fat on the apparent T1 value of the liver: assessment by water-only derived T1 mapping. Eur Radiol 33, 6844–6851 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-023-10052-0

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