Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility of intravoxel incoherent motion diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI) in detecting bowel inflammation in patients with Crohn disease (CD).
Methods: Sixteen patients who underwent intravoxel incoherent motion DW-MRI for CD and colonoscopy were recruited. Seventy-nine bowel segments were selected, and their mean D, D*, f, and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values were measured. The receiver operating characteristic curve was performed to distinguish inflamed from normal bowel.
Results: The mean D, D*, f, and ADC values of inflamed bowel were significantly lower than those of normal bowel (P < 0.05). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for f (0.906) and ADC values (0.924) was greater than that for D (0.709) or D* values (0.686) for differentiating inflamed bowel from normal bowel (P < 0.05).
Conclusions: Intravoxel incoherent motion DW-MRI is a feasible technique for detecting inflammation in CD patients. The ADC and f values have more potential than the D and D* values.