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Erschienen in:
01.12.2014 | Diagnostic Neuroradiology
Assessment of pituitary micro-lesions using 3D sampling perfection with application-optimized contrasts using different flip-angle evolutions
Erschienen in: Neuroradiology | Ausgabe 12/2014
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Introduction
The aim of this study was to explore the value of three-dimensional sampling perfection with application-optimized contrasts using different flip-angle evolutions (3D-SPACE) sequence in assessment of pituitary micro-lesions.
Methods
Coronal 3D-SPACE as well as routine T1- and dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) T1-weighted images of the pituitary gland were acquired in 52 patients (48 women and four men; mean age, 32 years; age range, 17–50 years) with clinically suspected pituitary abnormality at 3.0 T, retrospectively. The interobserver agreement of assessment results was analyzed with K-statistics. Qualitative analyses were compared using Wilcoxon signed-rank test.
Results
There was good interobserver agreement of the independent evaluations for 3D-SPACE images (k = 0.892), fair for routine MR images (k = 0.649). At 3.0 T, 3D-SPACE provided significantly better images than routine MR images in terms of the boundary of pituitary gland, definition of pituitary lesions, and overall image quality. The evaluation of pituitary micro-lesions using combined routine and 3D-SPACE MR imaging was superior to that using only routine or 3D-SPACE imaging.
Conclusion
The 3D-SPACE sequence can be used for appropriate and successful evaluation of the pituitary gland. We suggest 3D-SPACE sequence to be a powerful supplemental sequence in MR examinations with suspected pituitary micro-lesions.