Usefulness of T2 star‐weighted imaging in ovarian cysts and tumors

The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of hypointensity on T2 star-weighted imaging (T2*WI), which is useful for detecting hemosiderin, in endometriomas and other ovarian tumors. The efficacy of detecting adhesions around ovarian tumors was also investigated.Pelvic magnetic resonance (MR) examinations, including T2*WI, were carried out. The inclusion criteria were female patients with ovarian surgical treatments. One hundred seventeen patients with a total of 147 lesions were enrolled. Two radiologists retrospectively evaluated MR imaging (MRI) to predict ovarian pathology and the presence of adhesions. T2*WI hypointensity of the inside and outside along ovarian cysts/tumors was utilized to predict pathological diagnoses and the presence of adhesions, respectively. The kappa scores were calculated to measure interobserver agreement on MRI findings. The MRI interpretations were compared with the results of pathological investigation and surgical observations.Hypointensity inside along the cyst walls on T2*WI was observed in 100 out of 106 lesions of endometriomas (94.3%), and three out of 41 non-endometrial ovarian cysts/tumors (7.3%). Four different patterns of T2*WI were observed in ovarian cysts/tumors. The kappa score regarding T2*WI hypointensity inside along the cyst walls was 0.633. Using conventional routine pelvic MRI, the sensitivity for detecting adhesions around ovarian cysts was 84.5%. By adding T2*WI, the sensitivity improved to 91.4% (P < 0.01). With conventional methods to predict adhesions, the kappa score was 0.660. After adding T2*WI to the conventional methods, the kappa score was 0.767.Hypointensity on T2*WI was observed frequently in endometrioma. T2*WI also improved the sensitivity for detecting adhesions around ovarian cysts/tumors.