Abstract #0205

Correlation of T1 and T2* Corrected Dual-Echo MRI Vs. MRS for Hepatic Fat Determination in a Multicenter Clinical Trial: Results of the Phase II Study of the MTP Inhibitor AEGR-733

Mark Rosen¹, Sarah Englander¹, Harish Poptani¹, Evan Siegelman¹, James Gimpel², Dena Flamini², Matthew Parris³, Bill Sasiela³, Bruce Hillman⁴

¹Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; ²American College of Radiology Imaging Network, Philadelphia, PA, USA; ³Aegerion, Inc., Bridgewater, NJ, USA; ⁴Radiology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

A multisite trial of the MTP inhibitor AEGR-733 using hepatic MRI/MRS for liver fat determination was performed. Both single voxel (SV) MRS and multiple dual-echo gradient echo MRI data were used to quantify hepatic fat. A total of 1160 exams with evaluable MRI and MRS data sets were obtained. Correlation of hepatic fat by SV-MRS and several dual-echo MRI methods ranged from 0.870-0.890 for all data sets, 0.935-0.942 for protocol compliant MRI data, and 0.949-0.955 high-quality MRS data. Dual-echo MRI with correction for T1 and T2* effects outperformed other methods, with lower mean squared variation and fewer outlying data points.