Realce por contraste de les？es hepáticas em pacientes com cirrose: estudo cruzado comparativo de dois agentes de contraste para RM realizado em uma única institui？？o. Resultados preliminares

objective: to prospectively compare full dose gadopentetate dimeglumine (gd-dtpa) with full dose gadobenate dimeglumine (gd-bopta) in the detection of focal hepatic lesions in patients with chronic liver disease on mri. materials and methods: eight patients with hepatic cirrhosis and a strong suspicion for small hepatocellular carcinoma based on prior mri underwent contrast-enhanced mr examinations, one with full dose gd-dtpa and one with full dose gd-bopta. the exams were performed from 72-108 hours apart. two blinded and independent radiologists evaluated images for lesion number, characterization, enhancement, and subjective preference. results: there was no statistically significant difference between the two studies for lesion detection or characterization. there was 18% increased lesion enhancement for gd-bopta, compared to gd-dtpa, of the dominant lesion. both blinded readers subjectively preferred the images using gd-bopta over gd-dtpa in the majority of cases, based on greater lesion enhancement and better edge definition. conclusion: at equivalent full doses, gd-bopta compared similarly with gd-dtpa in the detection and characterization of focal hepatic lesions in patients with chronic liver disease. however, gd-bopta was superior for increased lesion enhancement and subjective preference of the reader.