MR relaxometry of the liver: significant elevation of T1 relaxation time in patients with liver cirrhosis

Objectives To evaluate hepatic relaxation times T1, T2 and T2* in healthy subjects and patients with liver cirrhosis stratified by the Child-Pugh classification (CPC). Methods Sixty-one consecutive patients were stratified by CPC (class A = 26; B = 20; C = 15) and compared with age-matched controls ( n = 31). Relaxometry measurements were performed at 1.5 T using six saturation recovery times (200–3,000 ms) to determine liver T1, six echo times (TE 14–113 ms) for T2 and eight TE (4.8–38 ms) for T2* assessment. Signal intensities in selected regions of interest in the liver parenchyma were fitted to theoretical models with least squares minimisation algorithms to determine T1, T2 and T2*. Results The most significant difference was the higher T1 values (852 ± 132 ms) in cirrhotic livers compared with controls (678 ± 45 ms, P