title: Transfusional hemochromatosis: quantitative relation of MR imaging pituitary signal intensity reduction to hypogonadotropic hypogonadism.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess the relationship between magnetic resonance (MR) imaging pituitary signal intensity reduction in patients with transfusional hemochromatosis and the clinical manifestation of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism.
  
  
  METHODS
  Pituitary MR imaging at 0.5 T was performed in 38 consecutive patients affected by secondary hemochromatosis and in 20 healthy volunteers. Serum ferritin levels were estimated in the affected population. Twenty (53%) of the 38 patients had hypogonadotropic hypogonadism diagnosed. Pituitary-to-fat signal intensity ratios were calculated from coronal gradient-echo (GRE) T2*-weighted MR images. The relationship between the quantitative reduction of the pituitary-to-fat signal intensity ratio and the clinical manifestation of pituitary dysfunction was assessed in the affected population. Signal intensity reduction in the anterior lobe of the pituitary gland was also correlated with the serum ferritin level.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The degree of reduction of the pituitary-to-fat signal intensity ratio correlated with the presence of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism, with a sensitivity of 90%, a specificity of 89%, and an overall accuracy of 89%. In addition, the reduction of pituitary signal intensity was greater in patients with higher ferritin levels (r = -0.55, r(2) = -0.30, P <.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The degree of signal intensity reduction, measured as the pituitary-to-fat signal intensity ratio for GRE T2*-weighted images, in patients with secondary hemochromatosis correlates with the severity of pituitary dysfunction.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Radiology, Università di Palermo, Italy. sparacia@unipa.it
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sparacia
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Iaia
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Banco
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: D'Angelo
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lagalla
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005293:Ferritins / Q000097:blood; D006432:Hemochromatosis / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D007006:Hypogonadism / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008297:Male; D010903:Pituitary Gland, Anterior / Q000473:pathology*; D012372:ROC Curve; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D065227:Transfusion Reaction; D017086:beta-Thalassemia / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy
chemical_list: D005293:Ferritins