Motion-Corrected versus Conventional Diffusion-Weighted Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Liver Using Non-Rigid Registration

It is challenging to overcome motion artifacts in diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) of the abdomen. This study aimed to evaluate the image quality of motion-corrected DWI of the liver using non-rigid registration in comparison with conventional DWI (c-DWI) in patients with liver diseases. Eighty-nine patients who underwent 3-T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the liver were retrospectively included. DWI was performed using c-DWI and non-rigid motion-corrected (moco) DWI was performed in addition to c-DWI. The image quality and conspicuity of hepatic focal lesions were scored using a five-point scale by two radiologists and compared between the two DWI image sets. The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) was measured in three regions of the liver parenchyma and in hepatic focal lesions, and compared between the two DWI image sets. Moco-DWI achieved higher scores in image quality compared to c-DWI in terms of liver edge sharpness and hepatic vessel margin delineation. The conspicuity scores of hepatic focal lesions were higher in moco-DWI. The standard deviation values of ADC of the liver parenchyma were lower in the moco-DWI than in the c-DWI. Moco-DWI using non-rigid registration showed improved overall image quality and provided more reliable ADC measurement, with an equivalent scan time, compared with c-DWI.