Yoshihiko Fukukura1, Takuro Kamiyama1, Koji Takumi1, Toshikazu Shindo1, Yuichi Kumagai1, Masayuki Nakajo1
1Radiology, Kagoshima University Graduate School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima, Japan
The purpose of this study was to assess the quality of biliary duct visualization using Gd-EOB-DTPA-enhanced magnetic resonance cholangiography (EOB-MRC) compared with half-Fourier acquisition single-shot turbo spin-echo magnetic resonance cholangiography (HASTE-MRC).In all patients, EOB-MRC showed significantly improved visualization of cystic duct (average score of three readers 3.43 vs. 3.01; P<0.05), and first (average score of three readers 4.12 vs. 3.75; P<0.005) and second division ducts (average score of three readers 3.00 vs. 2.51; P<0.0005) in comparison with HASTE-MRC. In patients with liver cirrhosis, there was no significant difference between EOB-MRC and HASTE-MRC in the grade of visualization of cystic duct, and first and second division ducts. These results suggest that EOB-MRC may be more useful in the evaluation of cystic duct, right and left hepatic duct, and second division ducts compared with HASTE-MRC in patients with normal liver function.