Title:Effect of Liver Segments and Hepatic Fibrosis Grade on Repeatability,
Reliability, and Diagnostic Efficiency of Intravoxel Incoherent Motion
Volume: 20
Author(s): Lesheng Huang, Jun Chen, Weiyin Vivian Liu, Guangjun Tian, Qian Wei, Hui Peng, Wanchun Zhang, Hongyi Li, Se Peng and Tianzhu Liu*
Affiliation:
- Department of Radiology, Guangdong Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhuhai 519000, China
Keywords:
: Liver segment, Diffusion weighted imaging, Hepatic fibrosis, Repeatability, Reliability, IVIM-DWI.
Abstract:
Background:
Intravoxel incoherent motion diffusion-weighted imaging (IVIM-DWI) is considered a potential marker of hepatic fibrosis (HF).
Objective:
To explore the influencing factors of repeatability and reliability in IVIM-DWI parameters of ROI-based liver segments in participants with HF
and healthy volunteers (HV) and to assess the diagnostic efficiency of these parameters in HF.
Methods:
Participants with early HF (EHF, n=59) or advanced HF (AHF, n=38) and HV (n=48) were recruited. Two examiners measured IVIM data using
mono-, bi-exponential and stretched exponential models. The results and influencing factors of repeatability and reliability of IVIM-DWI, and the
diagnostic efficiency were analyzed.
Results:
The repeatability of D* (CV: 26.62–41.47%) and DDC (CV: 18.01–34.40%) was poor, the repeatability of ADC (CV: 4.95–9.76%), D (CV:
7.09–15.52%), f (CV: 9.35–17.15%), and α (CV: 7.48–13.81%) was better; ordered logistic regression showed statistically significant results of
IVIM-derived parameters; the reliability showed no obvious trend, and ordered logistic regression showed statistically significant results of IVIMderived
parameters, groups, and partial hepatic segments (all p<0.001). IVIM-derived parameters with relatively good repeatability (CV<20%) and
reliability (ICC>0.4) were used to establish regression models for differential diagnosis. The AUC of regression models was 0.744–0.783 (EHF vs.
AHF), but no statistically significant parameters were found in the HV vs EHF comparison.
Conclusion:
IVIM-derived parameters were the most important factors affecting the repeatability and reliability, while staging of HF and hepatic segments may
be the influencing factors of reliability. IVIM-derived parameters showed medium diagnostic efficiency in distinguishing between EHF and AHF.