title: Menstrual cycle and age: influence on parenchymal contrast medium enhancement in MR imaging of the breast.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the influence of menstrual cycle and age on parenchymal contrast medium enhancement in magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of the breast.
  
  
  METHODS
  Dynamic gadolinium-enhanced fast low-angle shot, three-dimensional breast MR imaging was performed with high temporal and spatial resolution (eight measurements in 10 minutes). Menstrual cycle evaluations and age-influence studies were performed in 44 patients aged 27-55 years with a regular cycle (mean age, 41.5 years) and in 103 patients aged 15-79 years (mean age, 49.3 years), respectively. A region of interest was placed in each quadrant of the breast for evaluation of parenchymal enhancement. Quadrants with complete involution or lesions and patients who received hormonal therapy were excluded [corrected]. Analysis of variance was performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Parenchymal contrast medium enhancement in cycle days 7-20 (geometric mean enhancement at minutes 1-10 = 0.12-0.47) was significantly lower than that in cycle days 21-6 (geometric mean, 0.17-0.98; P < or = .001). Contrast medium enhancement in patients aged 35-50 years (mean enhancement, 0.17-0.75) was significantly higher than that in patients aged younger than 35 years or older than 50 years (mean enhancement, 0.12-0.40; P < .01).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients showed statistically significantly lower parenchymal enhancement in menstrual cycle days 7-20 than in days 21-6. Patients aged 35-50 years yielded higher parenchymal enhancement than did younger patients and older patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic Radiology, University of Tübingen, Germany.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Müller-Schimpfle
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ohmenhaüser
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Stoll
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Dietz
authors.forename: C D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Claussen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging; D001940:Breast / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D003287:Contrast Media; D004338:Drug Combinations; D005260:Female; D005682:Gadolinium; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008536:Meglumine; D008597:Menstrual Cycle; D008875:Middle Aged; D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D004369:Pentetic Acid / Q000031:analogs & derivatives
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media; D004338:Drug Combinations; D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D008536:Meglumine; D004369:Pentetic Acid; D005682:Gadolinium; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA