Relationships between MR transverse relaxation parameters R*(2), R(2) and R'(2) and hepatic iron content in thalassemic mice at 1.5 T and 3 T.
Assessment of hepatic iron concentration is important in the management of patients with thalassemia. The goal of this study was to investigate the relationships between the three MR transverse relaxation rates, R*(2), R(2) and R'(2), and hepatic iron content in a mouse model of thalassemia at 1.5 and 3 T field strengths. A GESFIDE (gradient-echo sampling of free induction decay and echo) pulse sequence was used to measure the three parameters efficiently in a single scan in a study examining the livers of normal and thalassemic mice, including a subgroup of the latter that were subjected to periodic transfusions. The results showed that R*(2), R(2) and R'(2) all correlated closely with liver iron concentration at both 1.5 T and 3 T, with correlation coefficients ranging from 0.72 to 0.79. High degrees of correlation (r = 0.93-0.99) were also observed among the three MR parameters at both field strengths. It can be concluded that the three rates could all be effective for assessing hepatic iron concentration and that imaging at higher fields may not offer any advantages over that at lower fields.
Laboratory for Structural NMR Imaging, Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Ruitian
R
Song
Wei
W
Lin
Qiukan
Q
Chen
Toshio
T
Asakura
Felix W
FW
Wehrli
Hee Kwon
HK
Song
D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006801:Humans; D007501:Iron / Q000378:metabolism*; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D051379:Mice; D011829:Radiation Dosage; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013789:Thalassemia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000378:metabolism*
D007501:Iron