title: Dynamic 4D MR angiography versus multislice CT angiography in the evaluation of vascular hepatic involvement in hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT), or Rendu-Osler-Weber disease, is a rare autosomal dominant disorder characterised by mucocutaneous or visceral vascular abnormalities that may be widely distributed throughout the cardiovascular system. The purpose of this study was to compare multislice computed tomography angiography (MSCTA) and 4D dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography (D-MRA) for evaluating vascular hepatic involvement in patients with HHT.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty-two consecutive HHT patients underwent MSCTA and D-MRA examinations for systematic analysis of vascular visceral involvement. The images from the two techniques were reviewed independently by two expert radiologists to identify the following vascular abnormalities: telangiectases or large vascular masses; perfusion disorders [transient hepatic attenuation differences (THADs)]; hepatic arteriovenous malformations (HAVMs). Data, as well as diameters of the common hepatic artery and portal vein, were compared with Cohen's kappa statistic, Student's t test and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, as appropriate.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Both MSCTA and D-MRA detected one or more of the following hepatic vascular abnormalities in 36/52 cases (telangiectases in 29/52, THADs in 23/52 and HAVMs in 25/52[CE1]). A good concordance was found between the two techniques when determining the type of hepatic shunt (κ=0.9). No statistically significant differences were found when comparing mean common hepatic artery and portal vein diameters (p=0.09 and 0.22, respectively) and their accuracy in predicting HAVMs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  D-MRA has the same diagnostic accuracy as MSCTA and has the advantage of being less invasive due to the absence of ionising radiation.
authors.affiliation: Section of Radiology, Di.M.I.M.P., HHT Interdepartmental Centre, University Hospital, Policlinico of Bari, Piazza Giulio Cesare 11, 70124, Bari, Italy. a.scardapane@radiologia.uniba.it
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Scardapane
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Stabile Ianora
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sabbà
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Moschetta
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Suppressa
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Castorani
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Angelelli
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000792:Angiography / Q000379:methods*; D001165:Arteriovenous Malformations / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008099:Liver / Q000098:blood supply*; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D018810:Magnetic Resonance Angiography / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012372:ROC Curve; D013683:Telangiectasia, Hereditary Hemorrhagic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*