Korean Journal of Radiology

The Korean Society of Radiology (대한영상의학회)
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Quantitative Measurement of Hepatic Fibrosis with Gadoxetic Acid-Enhanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Patients with Chronic Hepatitis B Infection: A Comparative Study on Aspartate Aminotransferase to Platelet Ratio Index and Fibrosis-4 Index

  • Lee, Guy Mok (Department of Radiology, Wonkwang University School of Medicine) ;
  • Kim, Youe Ree (Department of Radiology, Wonkwang University School of Medicine) ;
  • Ryu, Jong Hyun (Imaging Science Research Center, Wonkwang University) ;
  • Kim, Tae-Hoon (Imaging Science Research Center, Wonkwang University) ;
  • Cho, Eun Young (Department of Internal Medicine, Wonkwang University School of Medicine) ;
  • Lee, Young Hwan (Department of Radiology, Wonkwang University School of Medicine) ;
  • Yoon, Kwon-Ha (Department of Radiology, Wonkwang University School of Medicine)
  • Received : 2016.09.07
  • Accepted : 2016.12.19
  • Published : 2017.06.01
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Abstract

Objective: To quantitatively measure hepatic fibrosis on gadoxetic acid-enhanced magnetic resonance (MR) in chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients and identify the correlations with aspartate aminotransferase-to-platelet ratio index (APRI) and fibrosis-4 index (FIB-4) values. Materials and Methods: This study on gadoxetic acid-enhanced 3T MR imaging included 81 patients with CHB infection. To quantitatively measure hepatic fibrosis, MR images were analyzed with an aim to identify inhomogeneous signal intensities calculated from a coefficient of variation (CV) map in the liver parenchyma. We also carried out a comparative analysis between APRI and FIB-4 based on metaregression results. The diagnostic performance of the CV map was evaluated using a receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve. Results: In the MR images, the mean CV values in control, groups I, II, and III based on APRI were $4.08{\pm}0.92$, $4.24{\pm}0.80$, $5.64{\pm}1.11$, and $5.73{\pm}1.28$, respectively (p < 0.001). In CHB patients grouped by FIB-4, the mean CV values of groups A, B, and C were $4.22{\pm}0.95$, $5.40{\pm}1.19$, and $5.71{\pm}1.17$, respectively (p < 0.001). The mean CV values correlated well with APRI (r = 0.392, p < 0.001) and FIB-4 (r = 0.294, p < 0.001). In significant fibrosis group, ROC curve analysis yielded an area under the curve of 0.875 using APRI and 0.831 using FIB-4 in HB, respectively. Conclusion: Gadoxetic acid-enhanced MR imaging for calculating a CV map showed moderate correlation with APRI and FIB-4 values and could be employed to quantitatively measure hepatic fibrosis in patients with CHB.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

Supported by : Ministry of Health & Welfare

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