Added value of Dixon MRI in quantification of liver fat in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

Abstract

Background The Dixon method for fat/water separation employs a technique for achieving consistent fat suppression by utilizing water-only reconstruction. The fat-only Dixon technique is a tool for identifying microscopic fat and assessing pathological lesions of concern. Aim To investigate the MRI Dixon fat fraction role in assessing fat deposition among nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) cases and correlation with ultrasonography (USG). Patients and methods This study included 30 cases, with an age range falling between 19 and 80 years, both sexes. We included those with one or more risk factors for NAFLD in which diffuse hepatic steatosis or normal liver was identified utilizing USG of the abdomen. Participants were examined using USG examination and MRI. Results Good agreement ( k =0.615) between two imagining methods (MRI T1 Dixon and USG) in detecting fatty liver with significant difference between diagnostic confidence (accuracy) of MRI T1 Dixon and USG in detection of fatty liver ( P =0.005). A significant variance was observed among the grading of fatty liver by MRI T1 Dixon and the presence of METs criteria and alanine aminotransferase level ( P <0.05). By USG, a moderate agreement between fatty liver grading utilizing MRI T1 Dixon and fatty liver grading utilizing USG ( k =0.526). Conclusions Dixon MRI was a noninvasive method for quantifying fat fraction in NAFLD. When comparing the fatty liver grading on USG with the assessment of liver fat with MRI T1 Dixon of the liver, there was a significant overlap in the fat percentage within each grade.