Use of a Two-Point Dixon VIBE Sequence for Post-Contrast Liver MRI: Comparison with Standard Chemically-Selective Fat-Suppressed VIBE for Image Quality and Lesion Detection

Andrew B. Rosenkrantz¹, Lorenzo Mannelli¹, Sungheon Kim¹, James Babb¹

In 30 consecutive patients at 1.5T, a breath-hold two-point Dixon VIBE acquisition was obtained of the liver immediately following a standard chemically-selective fat-suppressed VIBE acquisition, both performed during the equilibrium phase after intravenous contrast administration. Compared with the standard VIBE sequence, the Dixon VIBE sequence demonstrated significantly improved strength of fat suppression, homogeneity of fat suppression, vessel sharpness, and subjective overall image quality. There were no significant differences between the two sequences for sensitivity or PPV for focal liver lesion detection. We conclude that Dixon-VIBE achieved higher image quality with preserved diagnostic ability for post-contrast liver MRI.