A prospective study of MRI in focal liver lesions using 1.5 tesla and its correlation with histopathological findings

Abstract

Objectives: Focal liver disease is a common diagnostic problem owing to its non specific clinical presentation and marked inter observer variation. Focal masses are usually diagnosed using ultrasonography (USG) and/or computed tomography (CT). Additionally, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is preferred when further characterization of these masses is needed. The main objective of this study is to study the accuracy of MRI in the characterization of benign and malignant focal liver lesions and to evaluate sensitivity and specificity of MRI in differentiating various lesions of liver. Methods: Patients with focal liver lesions detected on USG or CT in a period of 1 year i.e., from October 2012 to November 2013 were subjected for the study in Goa medical college. A total of 60 patients were included in this study. Diagnosis on MRI was made with background of clinical context. Final diagnosis was reached in consensus with biopsy/FNAC, wherever applicable. Results: In this study 60 patients presented with focal liver lesions 52 lesions were characterized by plain and post contrast MRI specificity of 86.2%. No. of lesions accurately characterized on MRI= 52, Total no. of lesions =60, Percentage = 52/60 = 86.6% In this study, 86.6% of focal liver lesions were accurately characterized on MRI. Conclusion: MRI is currently considered to be the most accurate non invasive method in the evaluation of liver lesions. Plain and contrast enhanced MR imaging is excellent for evaluating various focal hepatic lesions or at least narrows the differential diagnosis for most of these lesions which helps in the proper management of the patients.