Please see last week's post for the first half of this blog.
In addition to outlining Whole Body DWI, Attariwala and Picker outline DWI applications for the following areas of the body: neck, lung, breast, genitourinary, gynecologic applications, esophagus, stomach, bowel, pancreas and liver. The article states that DWI in routine imaging of singular body areas:
-provides a platform for improving lesion detection and description
-endows the radiologist reading the results with greater diagnostic confidence-rivals other combined anatomic and function imaging techniques
-limits the necessity of injecting the patient with a contrast agent
As Dr. Attariwala states in the article's conclusion, "DWI is a valuable functional imaging technique that can readily be applied to MRI of the whole body. DWI techniques coupled with anatomic conventional morphologic techniques will greatly aid in tissue characterization and reader confidence. This technique allows greater lesion conspicuity and characterization compared with other functional and anatomic imaging modalities, all with the benefit of no radiation."
Stay tuned for next week's blog post in which Dr. Attariwala will answer questions about his recently published article and AIM Medical Imaging.