title: Pancreas divisum: evaluation with MR cholangiopancreatography.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To determine the usefulness of magnetic resonance (MR) cholangiopancreatography in the diagnosis of pancreas divisum.
  
  
  METHODS
  In 310 patients, MR imaging was performed with heavily T2-weighted, two-dimensional, fast-spin-echo sequences. A body coil was used for 139 patients, and a torso multicoil and high-resolution imaging parameters were used for 171 patients. In 108 patients, correlation with endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) was available.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Two hundred sixty-eight examinations (86%) were diagnostic. Pancreas divisum was observed with MR imaging in 25 of 268 cases (9%)(interobserver agreement, 98% [kappa = .88]). Among the 171 examinations performed with a torso multicoil, 10% were nondiagnostic and the rate of detection of pancreas divisum was 12%. Pancreas divisum was depicted in six of the 108 patients who underwent ERCP, and there were no false-negative or false-positive MR imaging results in these patients.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  MR cholangiopancreatography is an accurate tool in the diagnosis of pancreas divisum and could replace ERCP.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Montreal General Hospital, Quebec, Canada.
authors.forename: P M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Bret
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Reinhold
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Taourel
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Guibaud
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Atri
authors.forename: A N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Barkun
mesh_terms: D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002760:Cholangiopancreatography, Endoscopic Retrograde; D000013:Congenital Abnormalities / Q000175:diagnosis; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015588:Observer Variation; D010179:Pancreas / Q000002:abnormalities*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity