MR imaging of focal liver lesions: value of Gadolinium-enhanced dynamic imaging of the whole liver using an ultra-fast 3D-turbo-gradient-echo sequence.

Purpose: To determine the value of a dynamic Gd-enhanced ultrafast T-1-weig hted 3D-turbo-gradient-echo sequence (3D-TFE) in the detection and characte rization of focal liver lesions. Materials and Methods: 51 patients with 12 4 focal liver lesions (35 hemangiomas, 30 HCC, 24 metastases, 22 cysts, 5 F NH/adenoma, 8 other lesions) were examined using a 1.5T system. The dynamic 3D-TFE sequence, achieving 40 slices with a thickness of 4.5 mm in a 17s b reathhold, was compared with a fat-suppressed T-2-weighted fast-spin-echo s equence (TSE SPIR), unenhanced and Gd-enhanced T-1-weighted spin-echo seque nces (SE), and a T-1-weighted gradient-echo sequence (FFE). Results: On 3D- TFE images more lesions (107/124) were identified than on T-1-weighted SE ( 101/124) and T-1-weighted FFE images (106/124), but less compared to T-2-we ighted TSE SPIR images (115/124). The 3D-TFE-sequence provided additional i nformation in 65/ 107 (61%) detected lesions by delineating the dynamic enh ancement pattern, most valuable in patients with HCCs in 90%. Conclusions: On dynamic 3D-TFE images more lesions could be depicted than on conventiona l T-1-weighted SE and T-1-weighted FFE images. Visualization of the dynamic enhancement pattern provided additional information for tumor characteriza tion in 61% of the detected lesions on the 3D-TFE images.