Associations between MRI T1 mapping, liver stiffness, quantitative MRCP, and laboratory biomarkers in children and young adults with autoimmune liver disease

• Published in: Abdominal imaging 2022-02, Vol.47 (2), p.672-683
• Main Authors: Mahalingam, Neeraja, Trout, Andrew T., Gandhi, Deep B., Sahay, Rashmi D., Singh, Ruchi, Miethke, Alexander G., Dillman, Jonathan R.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Bile ducts; Biomarkers; Child; Children; Cholangiopancreatography, Magnetic Resonance - methods; Cholangitis; Cross-Sectional Studies; Diagnosis; Gastroenterology; Hepatitis; Hepatitis, Autoimmune - diagnostic imaging; Hepatitis, Autoimmune - pathology; Hepatobiliary; Hepatology; Humans; Imaging; Inflammatory bowel diseases; Laboratories; Liver; Liver diseases; Liver Diseases - diagnostic imaging; Magnetic resonance imaging; Magnetic Resonance Imaging - methods; Male; Mapping; Median (statistics); Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Patients; Pediatrics; Prospective Studies; Radiology; Regression analysis; Regression models; Resonance; Statistical analysis; Stiffness; Young Adult; Young adults
• ISSN: 2366-004X; 2366-0058
• DOI: 10.1007/s00261-021-03378-0

Purpose Define relationships between quantitative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) metrics and clinical/laboratory data in a pediatric and young adult cohort with autoimmune liver disease (AILD). Materials and methods This prospective, cross-sectional study was institutional review board-approved. Patients enrolled in an institutional AILD registry were divided into groups: (1) autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) or (2) primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC)/autoimmune sclerosing cholangitis (ASC). Participants underwent serum liver biochemistry testing and research MRI examinations, including 3D magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP), magnetic resonance elastography (MRE), and iron-corrected T1 mapping (cT1). MRCP + and LiverMultiScan (Perspectum Ltd., Oxford, UK) were used to post-process 3D MRCP and cT1 data. Multiple linear regression models were used to assess relationships. Results 58 patients, 35 male, median age 16 years were included; 30 in the AIH group, 28 in the PSC/ASC group. After statistical adjustments for patient age, sex, presence of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), specific diagnosis (PSC/ASC vs. AIH), and time from diagnosis to MRI examination, left hepatic bile duct maximum diameter was a statistically significant predictor of whole liver mean cT1, cT1 interquartile range (IQR), and MRE liver stiffness ( p  = 0.01–0.04). Seven laboratory values were significant predictors of whole liver cT1 IQR ( p