Diagnostic value of apparent diffusion coefficient calculated with diffusion-weighted MRI for quantification of liver fibrosis

Utility of diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) in assessment of liver fibrosis

“…Control P 22,23 In other study, they found variable measurements of liver ADC with mean ADC in mild fibrosis = 0.97 while in advanced fibrosis = 0.78. 32 The variation in ADC values among fibrotic liver in different studies may be attributed to different machines that have been used together with variation in b values used in DWI/ADC.…”

“…At the same time, liver biopsy is an invasive procedure, carrying a risk of rare but potentially lifethreatening complications 10,12 ; however after recent development in MRI, there are different techniques that can be used to assess the fibrosis with more or less high accuracy, and one of these techniques is DWI/ADC which is non-invasive reliable method. 22 The decrease in ADC value among patients with liver fibrosis is attributed to accumulation of glycosaminoglycane, proteoglycane and collagen fibers within the liver and consequently restricted diffusion of water molecules. 30 Kumaresan et al, Richard et al, Hasan et al 23,31,32 concluded that the ADC value in fibrotic liver is significantly lower than that of normal liver, in our cases, we confirmed that as we detected high ADC value of the liver among control group.…”

“…20,21 Both CT and conventional MRI did not show high sensitivity for early stages of fibrosis, However, diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI) has been shown better results in diagnosing early fibrosis. 22 DWI-MRI is a technique in which water diffusion is quantified by the calculation of the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) because DWI-MRI is sensitive to the microscopic movement of water molecules. 22,23 DWI-MRI has many advantages, it is rapid, non-invasive and non-contrast imaging technique, but MR diffusion quantifications can be affected by some factors such as permeability, perfusion and cellular structure.…”

“…22 DWI-MRI is a technique in which water diffusion is quantified by the calculation of the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) because DWI-MRI is sensitive to the microscopic movement of water molecules. 22,23 DWI-MRI has many advantages, it is rapid, non-invasive and non-contrast imaging technique, but MR diffusion quantifications can be affected by some factors such as permeability, perfusion and cellular structure. In patients with chronic liver disease, ADC values are lower which may be explained by the deposition of proteoglycan and glycosaminoglycan fibers in the liver with subsequent restriction of the diffusion of water molecules.…”