title: [Computerized tomography versus nuclear magnetic resonance in acute pancreatitis].
abstract: The aim of the study was to compare Computed Tomography (CT) and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (MR) scan's diagnostic reliability in acute pancreatitis (AP). During a 44-month period 21 patients with a clinical and laboratory diagnosis of AP were submitted to CT and MR study. The scans were evaluated according to pancreatitis degree and presence and rate of necrosis. Pancreatitis degree was assessed using Balthazar's grading for CT scans; a similar classification was used for MR scans. Thirteen patients had oedematous pancreatitis and 8 necrotic pancreatitis. Necrosis was diagnosed intraoperatively or in non operated patients with CT scan. MR staging was identical to that of the CT ones except for 2 patients who were grade E at CT and grade D at MR. MR identified necrosis in all 8 patients with necrotic AP whereas CT diagnosed only 5 patients properly since 3 scans were performed without contrast medium infusion because of renal failure. MR proved to be a valid alternative in AP diagnosis: it provide the same diagnostic and prognostic information as CT and does not need contrast infusion, which makes it preferable to CT in the follow-up of severe AP evolution.
authors.affiliation: Divisione di Chirurgia d'Urgenza, Ospedale S. Raffaele, IRCCS, Università degli Studi di Milano.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Staudacher
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Parolini
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vanzulli
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zerbi
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Del Maschio
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D011379:Prognosis; D013997:Time Factors; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
vernacular_title: Tomografia computerizzata versus risonanza magnetica nucleare nella pancreatite acuta.