MR liver imaging and cholangiography in the presence of surgical metallic clips at 1.5 and 3 Tesla.
Journal Article (Journal Article)
To evaluate whether clips from prior cholecystectomy impair image quality during magnetic resonance cholangiography (MRC) at 3 Tesla (T) compared with 1.5 T, surgical clips were embedded in a gel phantom and positioned at predefined distances from a fluid-filled tube designed to simulate the bile duct. The maximum clip distance was noted where susceptibility artifacts obscured the fluid-filled tube at 1.5 T and 3 T. Susceptibility artifact size was calculated for each sequence within each magnet class. In vivo analysis included 42 patients postcholecystectomy who underwent MRC at either 1.5 T or 3 T. In vitro, mean area of susceptibility artifacts was 104 mm2 on 3-T and 75 mm2 on 1.5-T MR imaging (MRI). While surgical clips within a 2-mm range impaired visualization of the fluid-filled tube on 1.5-T MRI, this range increased to 4 mm on 3-T MRI. In vivo, MRC image quality was impaired by susceptibility artifacts in three of 21 cases at 3 T and in two of 21 cases at 1.5 T. Overall, biliary pseudo-obstructions due to susceptibility artifacts from cholecystectomy surgical clips were not substantially more common on 3-T MRC in clinical practice, and patients with a history of prior cholecystectomy should not be excluded from a 3-T MRC.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Merkle, EM; Dale, BM; Thomas, J; Paulson, EK
Published Date
- October 2006
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 16 / 10
Start / End Page
- 2309 - 2316
PubMed ID
- 16703314
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 0938-7994
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1007/s00330-006-0234-1
Language
- eng
Conference Location
- Germany