Fatty liver in acute pancreatitis:  characteristics in magnetic resonance imaging.
OBJECTIVE
The objective of this research was to study the characteristics of fatty liver (FL) in acute pancreatitis (AP) in 2-dimensional in-phase (IP)/out-of-phase (OP) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).


METHODS
Fifty patients with AP (23 men, 27 women; mean age, 44 [SD, 12] years [range, 16-73 years]) were included in this retrospective study. Patients' informed consent was waived. All of them performed abdominal MRI within 72 hours of symptom onset and MRI follow-up. The severity of the AP was graded according to the magnetic resonance severity index (MRSI). The MRSI cutoff was 7.0 points between the mild and the severe AP. Fatty liver in MRI was determined by the hepatic signal intensity difference between OP and IP images. Correlations between the severity of FL and MRSI or serum triglyceride levels were analyzed.


RESULTS
Of the 50 patients with AP, FL was found in 66% of patients' MRIs. A close correlation can be seen between the difference of liver signal intensities on IP/OP images and the MRSI (r = 0.83, P < 0.001). Close correlations were found between FL appearance on MRI and serum triglyceride levels in both mild (r = 0.93, P < 0.001) and severe AP (r = 0.95, P < 0.001). During follow-up MRI, the appearance of FL decreased following the decrease in MRSI scores and serum triglyceride levels in both mild and severe AP.


CONCLUSIONS
Fatty liver in AP is frequently observed in MRI. The appearance of FL in MRI may decrease after subsidence of AP.
Sichuan Key Laboratory of Medical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, Sichuan, People's Republic of China.
Bo
B
Xiao
Xiao Ming
XM
Zhang
Zhi Qiong
ZQ
Jiang
Wei
W
Tang
Xiao Hua
XH
Huang
Lin
L
Yang
Zhi Song
ZS
Feng
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003287:Contrast Media; D005234:Fatty Liver / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology*; D005260:Female; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000150:complications*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood
D003287:Contrast Media; D014280:Triglycerides; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA