Spio-MR Imaging versus Double-Phase Spiral CT in Detecting Malignant Lesions of the Liver

Purpose: To assess the diagnostic performance of superparamagnetic iron oxide MR (SPIO-MR) imaging compared with double-phase spiral CT in detecting liver metastases and hepatocellular carcinoma.Material and Methods: Thirty-eight patients with a total of 144 malignant lesions of the liver were examined by CT and SPIO-MR. After definition of a gold standard by a panel of experts, the patient images were randomized and presented to a blinded jury of 5 independent observers whose task was to identify as many lesions as possible. the results were tested for statistical significance using multifactorial analysis of variance (α=5%).Results: SPIO-MR produced the highest detection rate and was significantly superior (p<0.05) to unenhanced MR imaging and double spiral-phase contrast-enhanced CT (DPS-CECT). Maximum performance in DPS-CECT was obtained during the portal venous contrast phase but was significantly inferior to SPIO-MR imaging. the scores for unenhanced CT and unenhanced MR were significantly lower tha...