• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.22-31
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• 2011

Purpose : To compare free-breathing and respiratory-triggered diffusion-weighted imaging on 1.5-T MR system in the detection of hepatic lesions. Materials and Methods: This single-institution study was approved by our institutional review board. Forty-seven patients (mean 57.9 year; M:F = 25:22) underwent hepatic MR imaging on 1.5-T MR system using both free-breathing and respiratory-triggered diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) at a single examination. Two radiologists retrospectively reviewed respiratory-triggered and free-breathing sets (B50, B400, B800 diffusion weighted images and ADC map) in random order with a time interval of 2 weeks. Liver SNR and lesion-to-liver CNR of DWI were calculated measuring ROI. Results : Total of 62 lesions (53 benign, 9 malignant) that included 32 cysts, 13 hemangiomas, 7 hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs), 5 eosinophilic infiltration, 2 metastases, 1 eosinophilic abscess, focal nodular hyperplasia, and pseudolipoma of Glisson's capsule were reviewed by two reviewers. Though not reaching statistical significance, the overall lesion sensitivities were increased in respiratory-triggered DWI [reviewer1: reviewer2, 47/62(75.81%):45/62(72.58%)] than free-breathing DWI [44/62(70.97%):41/62(66.13%)]. Especially for smaller than 1 cm hepatic lesions, sensitivity of respiratory-triggered DWI [24/30(80%):21/30(70%)] was superior to free-breathing DWI [17/30(56.7%):15/30(50%)]. The diagnostic accuracy measuring the area under the ROC curve (Az value) of free-breathing and respiratory-triggered DWI was not statistically different. Liver SNR and lesion-to-liver CNR of respiratory-triggered DWI ($87.6{\pm}41.4$, $41.2{\pm}62.5$) were higher than free-breathing DWI ($38.8:{\pm}13.6$, $24.8{\pm}36.8$) (p value < 0.001, respectively). Conclusion: Respiratory-triggered diffusion-weighted MR imaging seemed to be better than free-breathing diffusion-weighted MR imaging on 1.5-T MR system for the detection of smaller than 1 cm lesions by providing high SNR and CNR.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.23 no.7
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• pp.720-731
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• 2022

Objective: We aimed to develop and test a deep learning algorithm (DLA) for fully automated measurement of the volume and signal intensity (SI) of the liver and spleen using gadoxetic acid-enhanced hepatobiliary phase (HBP)-magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and to evaluate the clinical utility of DLA-assisted assessment of functional liver capacity. Materials and Methods: The DLA was developed using HBP-MRI data from 1014 patients. Using an independent test dataset (110 internal and 90 external MRI data), the segmentation performance of the DLA was measured using the Dice similarity score (DSS), and the agreement between the DLA and the ground truth for the volume and SI measurements was assessed with a Bland-Altman 95% limit of agreement (LOA). In 276 separate patients (male:female, 191:85; mean age ± standard deviation, 40 ± 15 years) who underwent hepatic resection, we evaluated the correlations between various DLA-based MRI indices, including liver volume normalized by body surface area (LV_BSA), liver-to-spleen SI ratio (LSSR), MRI parameter-adjusted LSSR (aLSSR), LSSR × LV_BSA, and aLSSR × LV_BSA, and the indocyanine green retention rate at 15 minutes (ICG-R15), and determined the diagnostic performance of the DLA-based MRI indices to detect ICG-R15 ≥ 20%. Results: In the test dataset, the mean DSS was 0.977 for liver segmentation and 0.946 for spleen segmentation. The Bland-Altman 95% LOAs were 0.08% ± 3.70% for the liver volume, 0.20% ± 7.89% for the spleen volume, -0.02% ± 1.28% for the liver SI, and -0.01% ± 1.70% for the spleen SI. Among DLA-based MRI indices, aLSSR × LV_BSA showed the strongest correlation with ICG-R15 (r = -0.54, p < 0.001), with area under receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.932 (95% confidence interval, 0.895-0.959) to diagnose ICG-R15 ≥ 20%. Conclusion: Our DLA can accurately measure the volume and SI of the liver and spleen and may be useful for assessing functional liver capacity using gadoxetic acid-enhanced HBP-MRI.

• Proceedings of the KSMRM Conference
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• 2007.10a
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• pp.44-44
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• 2007

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.23 no.12
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• pp.1260-1268
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• 2022

Objective: To propose standardized MRI-proton density fat fraction (PDFF) cutoff values for diagnosing hepatic steatosis, evaluated using contemporary PDFF measuring methods in a large population of healthy adults, using histologic fat fraction (HFF) as the reference standard. Materials and Methods: A retrospective search of electronic medical records between 2015 and 2018 identified 1063 adult donor candidates for liver transplantation who had undergone liver MRI and liver biopsy within a 7-day interval. Patients with a history of liver disease or significant alcohol consumption were excluded. Chemical shift imaging-based MRI (CS-MRI) PDFF and high-speed T2-corrected multi-echo MR spectroscopy (HISTO-MRS) PDFF data were obtained. By temporal splitting, the total population was divided into development and validation sets. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was performed to evaluate the diagnostic performance of the MRI-PDFF method. Two cutoff values with sensitivity > 90% and specificity > 90% were selected to rule-out and rule-in, respectively, hepatic steatosis with reference to HFF ≥ 5% in the development set. The diagnostic performance was assessed using the validation set. Results: Of 921 final participants (624 male; mean age ± standard deviation, 31.5 ± 9.0 years), the development and validation sets comprised 497 and 424 patients, respectively. In the development set, the areas under the ROC curve for diagnosing hepatic steatosis were 0.920 for CS-MRI-PDFF and 0.915 for HISTO-MRS-PDFF. For ruling-out hepatic steatosis, the CS-MRI-PDFF cutoff was 2.3% (sensitivity, 92.4%; specificity, 63.0%) and the HISTO-MRI-PDFF cutoff was 2.6% (sensitivity, 88.8%; specificity, 70.1%). For ruling-in hepatic steatosis, the CS-MRI-PDFF cutoff was 3.5% (sensitivity, 73.5%; specificity, 88.6%) and the HISTO-MRI-PDFF cutoff was 4.0% (sensitivity, 74.7%; specificity, 90.6%). Conclusion: In a large population of healthy adults, our study suggests diagnostic thresholds for ruling-out and ruling-in hepatic steatosis defined as HFF ≥ 5% by contemporary PDFF measurement methods.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.22 no.11
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• pp.1786-1796
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• 2021

Objective: To evaluate the prognostic implications of preoperative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with a focus on those with targetoid appearance based on the Liver Imaging Reporting and Data System (LI-RADS), as well as known microvascular invasion (MVI) features. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study included 242 patients (190 male; mean age, 57.1 years) who underwent surgical resection of a single HCC (≤ 5 cm) as well as preoperative gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI between January 2012 and March 2015. LI-RADS category was assigned, and the LR-M category was further classified into two groups according to rim arterial-phase hyperenhancement (APHE). The imaging features associated with MVI were also assessed. The overall survival (OS), recurrence-free survival (RFS), and their associated factors were evaluated. Results: Among the 242 HCCs, 190 (78.5%), 25 (10.3%), and 27 (11.2%) were classified as LR-4/5, LR-M with rim APHE, and LR-M without rim APHE, respectively. LR-M with rim APHE (vs. LR-4/5; hazard ratio [HR] for OS, 5.48 [p = 0.002]; HR for RFS, 2.09 [p = 0.042]) and tumor size (per cm increase; HR for OS, 6.04 [p = 0.009]; HR for RFS, 1.77 [p = 0.014]) but not MVI imaging features (p > 0.05) were independent factors associated with OS and RFS. Compared to the 5-year OS and RFS rates in the LR-4/5 group (93.9% and 66.8%, respectively), the LR-M with rim APHE group had significantly lower rates (68.0% and 45.8%, respectively, both p < 0.05), while the LR-M without rim APHE group did not significantly differ in the survival rates (91.3% and 80.2%, respectively, both p > 0.05). Conclusion: Further classification of LR-M according to the presence of rim APHE may help predict the postoperative prognosis of patients with a single HCC.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.22 no.11
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• pp.1886-1893
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• 2021

Objective: To assess the feasibility of quantitatively assessing pancreatic steatosis using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and its correlation with obesity and metabolic risk factors in pediatric patients. Materials and Methods: Pediatric patients (≤ 18 years) who underwent liver fat quantification MRI between January 2016 and June 2019 were retrospectively included and divided into the obesity and control groups. Pancreatic proton density fat fraction (P-PDFF) was measured as the average value for three circular regions of interest (ROIs) drawn in the pancreatic head, body, and tail. Age, weight, laboratory results, and mean liver MRI values including liver PDFF (L-PDFF), stiffness on MR elastography, and T2^* values were assessed for their correlation with P-PDFF using linear regression analysis. The associations between P-PDFF and metabolic risk factors, including obesity, hypertension, diabetes mellitus (DM), and dyslipidemia, were assessed using logistic regression analysis. Results: A total of 172 patients (male:female = 125:47; mean ± standard deviation [SD], 13.2 ± 3.1 years) were included. The mean P-PDFF was significantly higher in the obesity group than in the control group (mean ± SD, 4.2 ± 2.5% vs. 3.4 ± 2.4%; p = 0.037). L-PDFF and liver stiffness values showed no significant correlation with P-PDFF (p = 0.235 and p = 0.567, respectively). P-PDFF was significantly associated with obesity (odds ratio 1.146, 95% confidence interval 1.006-1.307, p = 0.041), but there was no significant association with hypertension, DM, and dyslipidemia. Conclusion: MRI can be used to quantitatively measure pancreatic steatosis in children. P-PDFF is significantly associated with obesity in pediatric patients.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.13 no.12
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• pp.5931-5936
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• 2012

This study was to evaluate the clinical usefulness of the PRESS technique based on the correlation between PRESS technique and biopsy results by applying 3.0T high magnetic field MRS technique for evaluation of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease patients. This experiment were carried out using a 3.0T magnetic resonance imaging equipment. The part data of each spectrum is taken by peak area integration. The part data of resonance peak was used to calculate relative ratio. MR spectral peak in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is from 0.9 to 1.6 ppm. According to MRS method study result, Patients with NAFLD were obtained with 94% sensitivity and 80% specificity(p=0.000). When compared to normal based on MRS and Biopsy results was valid correlation(r=0.79, p=0.04). Results for NAFLD(r=0.89, p=0.002) also showed a correlation. Therefore, PRESS technique to evaluate patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, the distribution difference between normal liver and fatty liver part is significantly distinguished. Biopsy and MRS fatty liver peak ratio(%) proves high lipid over grade(r = 0.7).

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• v.54 no.6
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• pp.547-550
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• 2021

A 71-year-old male patient visited Yeungnam University Hospital with abnormal chest computed tomography (CT) findings. Chest CT revealed multiple lung nodules and a posterior mediastinal tumor, the diagnosis of which was confirmed surgically. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the abdomen showed multiple small nodules, which were diagnosed as cavernous hemangioma in the liver based on the pathology results of the mediastinal and lung masses in combination with MRI findings. Cavernous hemangiomas are benign tumors that can occur throughout the body, mainly in the skin and subcutaneous tissue. The liver is the most common internal organ containing hemangiomas, whereas they are very rarely found in the lungs or mediastinum.

• Proceedings of the KSMRM Conference
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• 2003.10a
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• pp.40-40
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• 2003

The purpose of this study was to characterize focal hepatic lesions through pre and post ferucarbotran-enhanced T2 and T2＊-weighted imaging and to help differentiate benign and malignant lesions 대상 및 방법： Consecutive 34 patients with 52 hepatic lesions underwent MRI before and after intravenous bolus injection of ferucarbotran (Resovist Sobering, Berlin, Germany) for evaluation of focal hepatic lesions. Lesions included hemangiomas (n=17), metastases (n=12), cysts (n=10), hepatocellular carcinomas (n=8), dysplastic nodules (n=4), and focal fat deposit (n=1). T2-weighted fast spin echo (TR/TE： 4060/138) and gradient echo T2＊-weighted images(TR/TE： 140/5.3, FA = 90) were obtained according to the institutional routine imaging protocol. Lesional signal-intensity and lesion-to-liver contrast changes were measured by contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) from region of interest.

• Proceedings of the KSMRM Conference
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• 2001.11a
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• pp.109-109
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• 2001

Purpose： To assess the feasibility of sequential administration of ferumoxides and mangafodi trisodium in the same imaging protocols. Method： Thirty patients underwent double-contrast enhanced MR imaging of liver usi ferumoxides (Fe-MRI) and mangafodipir trisodium (Mn-MRI) on 1.5T GE Horizon system. In twenty patients, Mn-MRI was immediately followed by Fe-MRI. In ten patients, Fe-MR was performed first, then Mn-MRI was performed immediately, In all cases, precontras T1-weighted in-phase and opposed-phase spoiled gradient echo (GRE) images an T2-weighted fast spin-echo images (TR 4000ms, TE 102ms, ETL 8-12) were obtained Fe-MRI was performed with FSE and steady state GRE (TE 10 msec, flip angle 30 sequences. Mn-MRI was performed with in-phase and opposed-phase spoiled GR sequences. The SNR changes after the use of each contrast agents were calculated.