Inferior vena cava obstruction in Budd-Chiari syndrome: a comparative study of rapid quantitative phase-contrast MRI and MRV

Purpose The purpose of this study was to analyze inferior vena cava (IVC) obstruction in Budd-Chiari syndrome (BCS) using rapid quantitative phase-contrast (PC) magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and compare the diagnostic efficacy of PC and MR venography (MRV) to explore the clinical prospects of applying PC quantitative diagnosis in IVC obstruction in BCS. Materials and methods PC quantitative data and MRV qualitative data obtained in 35 DSA-recognized inferior vena cava obstruction in BCS patients and 35 patients with liver focal lesions found in physical examination were analyzed and compared. Results The areas under the ROC curve for diagnostic parameters related to PC quantitative parameters, including stroke volume, forward flow volume, absolute stroke volume, mean flux, stroke distance, mean velocity (MV), and peak velocity, were 0.7767, 0.7788, 0.7747, 0.7665, 0.9143, 0.9159, and 0.8947, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of MV in the diagnosis of IVC obstruction were 88.57%, 85.71%, and 87.14%, respectively. For IVC obstruction in BCS, there was no significant difference between the diagnostic efficacy of MV (one of the quantitative parameters of PC) and that of MRV (P = 0.0768). Conclusion PC can be used to diagnose IVC obstruction in BCS and improve the understanding of hemodynamics of IVC obstruction in BCS.