T1 and T2 alterations in the brains of patients with hepatic cirrhosis

PURPOSE: To determine whether previously reported T1-weighted MR hyperintensities in the brains of patients with hepatic cirrhosis are accompanied by changes in T2. METHODS: We measured T1 and T2 in the brains of 10 patients with chronic liver disease and 7 age-matched healthy volunteers, using classic spin-echo sequences with multiple saturation recovery limes and multiple echoes. RESULTS: Both T1 and T2 were shortened in the basal ganglia, cortex, and white matter of the patients, with the greatest shortening in the globus pallidus, where 1/T1 was increased by 0.76 s(-1) or 74%, and 1/T2 by 1.45 s(-1) or 11%. CONCLUSIONS: The T1 changes were accompanied by T2 changes of greater magnitude that were not as visible because T2 is normally much shorter than T1, especially in the globus pallidus.