Hepatic cavernous hemangioma: temporal peritumoral enhancement during multiphase dynamic MR imaging.

PURPOSE: To determine whether temporal parenchymal enhancement around hepatic cavernous hemangiomas can be correlated with the rapidity of intratumoral contrast material enhancement and/or tumor volume at dynamic magnetic resonance (MR) imaging.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Dynamic MR images obtained in 94 patients with 167 hemangiomas were retrospectively reviewed for peritumoral enhancement. Tumor volume was estimated by using the longest dimension on nonenhanced images. Speed of intratumoral contrast material enhancement was determined with early nonequilibrium phase images and was categorized as rapid (>75% of tumor volume), intermediate (25%-75% of tumor volume), or slow (<25% of tumor volume).

RESULTS: Thirty-two of the 167 hemangiomas (19%) had temporal peritumoral enhancement, which was more common in hemangiomas with rapid enhancement (20 of 49 [41%]) than in those with intermediate (12 of 62 [19%]) and slow (0 of 56 [0%]) enhancement (P: <.001). The mean diameter of the hemangiomas with peritumoral enhancement was not significantly different from that of hemangiomas without peritumoral enhancement (P: >.05). Hemangiomas with rapid enhancement (mean diameter, 16 mm +/- 8), however, were significantly smaller than those with intermediate enhancement (mean diameter, 33 mm +/- 34) (P: <.001).

CONCLUSION: Temporal peritumoral enhancement on dynamic MR images of hepatic hemangiomas correlates well with the speed of intratumoral contrast material enhancement and was most commonly encountered in rapidly enhancing small lesions. There was no statistically significant relationship, however, between peritumoral enhancement and tumor volume.