Changes in pancreatic exocrine function, fat and fibrosis in diabetes mellitus: analysis using MR imaging.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the relationships between hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) levels with exocrine pancreatic function using cine-dynamic magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) and the pancreatic parenchyma using fat-suppressed T1 mapping and the proton density fat fraction (PDFF). METHODS: Patients who underwent 3T-MRI and HbA1c measurement were retrospectively recruited. MRI included cine-dynamic MRCP with a spatially selective inversion-recovery (SS-IR) pulse, fat-suppressed Look-Locker T1 mapping and multiecho 3D Dixon-based PDFF mapping. The pancreatic exocrine secretion grade on cine-dynamic MRCP, T1 values, and PDFF were analyzed in non-diabetic (n = 32), pre-diabetic (n = 44) and diabetic (n = 23) groups defined using HbA1c. RESULTS: PDFF was weakly correlation with HbA1c (ρ = 0.30, p = 0.002). No correlations were detected between HbA1c and secretion grade (ρ = - 0.16, p = 0.118) or pancreatic parenchymal T1 (ρ = 0.13, p = 0.19). The secretion grade was comparable between the three groups. The T1 value was higher in diabetic (T1 = 1006.2+/- 224.8 ms) than in non-diabetic (T1 = 896.2+/- 86.3 ms, p = 0.010) and pre-diabetic (T1 = 870.1+/- 91.7 ms, p < 0.010) patients. The PDFF was higher in diabetic (FF = 11.8+/- 8.7 %) than in non-diabetic (FF = 6.8+/- 4.2 %, p = 0.014) patients. CONCLUSION: Pancreatic exocrine function, T1, and FF showed no correlation with HbA1c. Pancreatic T1 and fat fraction is increased in patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus. ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE: This study demonstrates unaffected exocrine function in pre-diabetes and diabetes and confirms that pancreatic parenchymal T1 and FF are increased in patients with diabetes.

Liver cirrhosis: relationship between fibrosis-associated hepatic morphological changes and portal hemodynamics using four-dimensional flow magnetic resonance imaging.

PURPOSE: The mechanisms underlying the morphological changes in liver cirrhosis remain unknown. This study aimed to clarify the relationship between fibrotic hepatic morphology and portal hemodynamic changes using four-dimensional flow magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Overall, 100 patients with suspected liver disease who underwent 3-T MRI were evaluated in this retrospective study. Liver fibrosis was assessed using a combination of visual assessment of the hepatic morphology and quantitative measures, including the fibrosis-4 index and aspartate transaminase-to-platelet ratio. It was classified into three groups according to the severity of fibrosis as follows: A (normal), B (mild-to-moderate), and C (severe). Quantitative indices, including area (mm2), net flow (mL/s), and average velocity (cm/s), were measured in the right portal vein (RPV) and left portal vein (LPV), and were compared across the groups using the Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney U tests. RESULTS: Among the 100 patients (69.1 ± 12.1 years; 59 men), 45, 35, and 20 were categorized into groups A, B, and C, respectively. The RPV area significantly differed among the groups (from p < 0.001 to p = 0.001), showing a gradual decrease with fibrosis progression. Moreover, the net flow significantly differed between groups A and B and between groups A and C (p < 0.001 and p < 0.001, respectively), showing a decrease during the early stage of fibrosis. In the LPV, the net flow significantly differed among the groups (from p = 0.001 to p = 0.030), revealing a gradual increase with fibrosis progression. CONCLUSION: The atrophy-hypertrophy complex, which is a characteristic imaging finding in advanced cirrhosis, was closely associated with decreased RPV flow in the early stage of fibrosis and a gradual increase in LPV flow across all stages of fibrosis progression.

A case of successful treatment with antiretroviral therapy for HIV in a patient with marked liver dysfunction.

Background: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is often complicated with hepatitis virus infection. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) should be initiated with caution for patients with severe virus- or drug-induced acute hepatitis while considering factors that might interfere with the initiation of therapy. Case report: Herein, we present a case of a 67-year-old woman who presented with symptoms of severe liver injury of unknown cause. Laboratory examinations revealed HIV infection. The HIV viral load was high, and treatment with ART was considered. However, a liver biopsy could not be performed because of hyperbilirubinemia and the risk of severe hepatic damage. After assessing the risk of further liver damage, ART was safely administered despite hyperbilirubinemia. Treatment with ART could successfully reduce the viral load and bilirubin levels. Conclusion: ART treatment could be safely used for patients with HIV to reduce the viral load and bilirubin levels while avoiding the risk of liver failure.

Value of 3-T MR imaging in intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm with a concomitant invasive carcinoma.

OBJECTIVES: To examine the value of 3-T MRI for evaluating the difference between the pancreatic parenchyma of intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm with a concomitant invasive carcinoma (IPMN-IC) and the pancreatic parenchyma of patients without an IPMN-IC. METHODS: A total of 132 patients underwent abdominal 3-T MRI. Of the normal pancreatic parenchymal measurements, the pancreas-to-muscle signal intensity ratio in in-phase imaging (SIR-I), SIR in opposed-phase imaging (SIR-O), SIR in T2-weighted imaging (SIR-T2), ADC (×10-3 mm2/s) in DWI, and proton density fat fraction (PDFF [%]) in multi-echo 3D DIXON were calculated. The patients were divided into three groups (normal pancreas group: n = 60, intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasm (IPMN) group: n = 60, IPMN-IC group: n = 12). RESULTS: No significant differences were observed among the three groups in age, sex, body mass index, prevalence of diabetes mellitus, and hemoglobin A1c (p = 0.141 to p = 0.657). In comparisons among the three groups, the PDFF showed a significant difference (p < 0.001), and there were no significant differences among the three groups in SIR-I, SIR-O, SIR-T2, and ADC (p = 0.153 to p = 0.684). The PDFF of the pancreas was significantly higher in the IPMN-IC group than in the normal pancreas group or the IPMN group (p < 0.001 and p < 0.001, respectively), with no significant difference between the normal pancreas group and the IPMN group (p = 0.916). CONCLUSIONS: These observations suggest that the PDFF of the pancreas is associated with the presence of IPMN-IC. KEY POINTS: • The cause and risk factors of IPMN with a concomitant invasive carcinoma have not yet been clarified. • The PDFF of the pancreas was significantly higher in the IPMN-IC group than in the normal pancreas group or the IPMN group. • Pancreatic PDFF may be a potential biomarker for the development of IPMN with a concomitant invasive carcinoma.

Evaluation of liver fibrosis using hepatic extracellular volume fraction by contrast-enhanced computed tomography before and after direct-acting antiviral therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis C infection: comparison with serological liver fibrosis markers.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate time-dependent changes in hepatic extracellular volume (ECV) fraction using contrast-enhanced CT (CECT) and serological liver fibrosis markers, the fibrosis-4 (FIB-4) index and aspartate aminotransferase to platelet ratio index (APRI), before and after direct-acting antiviral therapy (DAA) for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. METHODS: 41 HCV-infected patients who achieved sustained virological response (SVR) after DAA (SVR group) and 10 control patients (untreated or unresponsive to treatment) who underwent CECT and serum biochemical tests before or after the first examination/DAA (T1) and at intervals thereafter (T2:<6 months after T1, T3: at 6-12 months, T4: at 12-24 months, and T5:>24 months) were evaluated. RESULTS: In the control group, ECV fractions remained relatively unchanged through the study, and significant differences in FIB-4 index comparisons and APRI comparisons were only seen between the T2 and T4 values (p = 0.046 and p = 0.028, respectively). In the SVR group, ECV fractions were significantly different between T1 and T4 and T1 and T5 (p = 0.046 and 0.022, respectively), and both FIB-4 index and APRI were significantly different between T1 and all other time points (p = 0.017 to p < 0.001 and p = 0.001 to p < 0.001, respectively). CONCLUSION: After DAA, ECV fraction decreased slowly, suggesting an improvement in hepatic fibrosis, while serological liver fibrosis markers decreased immediately, probably due to improvement in hepatic inflammation. ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE: ECV fraction has the potential to be a non-invasive biomarker for the assessment of liver fibrosis after direct-acting antiviral therapy.

Influence of cholecystectomy on the flow dynamic pattern of bile in the extrahepatic bile duct: Assessment by cine-dynamic MRCP with spatially-selective IR pulse.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the influence of cholecystectomy on the flow dynamic pattern of bile in the extrahepatic bile duct by using cine-dynamic MRCP with spatially-selective inversion-recovery (IR) pulse non-invasively. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 56 patients with cholecystectomy and 48 control subjects without cholecystectomy who underwent cine-dynamic MRCP with spatially-selective IR pulse at 1.5 T or 3 T (TR/TE, 4000 msec/500 msec; echo train spacing, 6.5 msec; echo train length, 172; section thickness, 50 mm; matrix, 320 × 320; field of view, 320 × 320 mm; bandwidth, 488 Hz; and inversion time, 2200 msec). In cine-dynamic MRCP, IR pulse with 20 mm width was placed on the common bile duct (CBD) to evaluate the movement of bile (antegrade and reversed bile flow). Cine-dynamic MRCP imaging was scanned every 15 s (imaging, 4 s; rest, 11 s) during 5 min to acquire a series of single-shot images (a total of 20 images). The frequency that antegrade or reversed bile flow was observed in the extrahepatic bile duct, and 5-point grading score based on the moving distance of antegrade or reversed bile flow were compared between the groups. Both groups were compared using the χ2 and Mann-Whitney U tests (P < 0.05 considered significant). RESULTS: Antegrade bile flow was observed more frequently in the cholecystectomy group than in the non-cholecystectomy group (5.1 times vs. 2.8 times, P = 0.008). Mean grading score of antegrade bile flow was significantly greater in the cholecystectomy group than in the non-cholecystectomy group (mean grade, 0.33 vs 0.21; P = 0.014). Regarding reversed bile flow, there were no significant differences in the frequency and grading score between cholecystectomy group and non-cholecystectomy group. CONCLUSION: Antegrade bile flow was observed more frequently and predominantly in patients after cholecystectomy in cine-dynamic MRCP with spatially-selective IR pulse while reversed bile flow was observed equivalently.