Evaluation of diffusivity in pituitary adenoma: 3D turbo field echo with diffusion-sensitized driven-equilibrium preparation.

OBJECTIVE

Diffusivity of pituitary adenoma has not been investigated fully. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of turbo field echo with diffusion-sensitized driven-equilibrium (DSDE-TFE) preparation for pituitary adenoma in the sella turcica and unaffected anterior lobe of the pituitary gland.

METHODS

This retrospective study included 23 adult patients with pituitary adenomas. Among them, 6 each were prolactin-producing adenomas and growth hormone-producing adenomas (GH) and the remaining 11 were non-functioning adenomas (NON). The apparent diffusion coefficients (ADCs) were measured in the pituitary adenoma and in the unaffected pituitary gland using coronal reformatted plane.

RESULTS

All pituitary adenomas were clearly visualized on DSDE-TFE and ADC maps without obvious geometrical distortion. There were no statistically significant differences in ADC of the all pituitary adenoma (1.50 ± 0.61 × 10(-3) mm(2) s(-1)) and the unaffected anterior lobe of the pituitary gland (1.49 ± 0.37 × 10(-3) mm(2) s(-1), p = 0.99). The ADC in prolactin-producing adenomas (2.04 ± 0.76 × 10(-3) mm(2) s(-1)) was significantly higher than that in GH (1.26 ± 0.47 × 10(-3) mm(2) s(-1); p < 0.05) and NON (1.33 ± 0.42 × 10(-3) mm(2) s(-1); p = 0.04). There was no statistically significant difference between GH and NON (p = 0.97). The intraclass correlation coefficient for ADC was 0.985 in adenomas and 0.635 in unaffected glands.

CONCLUSION

With its insensitivity to field inhomogeneity and high spatial resolution, DSDE-TFE proved a feasible method for evaluating the diffusivity in the pituitary gland and adenoma.

ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE

DSDE-TFE could enable us to assess ADC of pituitary adenoma in the sella turcica with high resolution and few susceptibility artefacts.