Morphologic and functional evaluation of adrenal masses in patients with normal adrenal function using MR imaging and Np-59 scintigraphy

MR imaging has shown promise in distinguishing metastasis from adenomas. Adrenal scintigraphy has also shown high specificity for adenoma detection. To determine if combined morphologic and functional data are superior to either data set alone, the authors evaluated 20 adenomas and 15 metastases using spin-echo MR imaging at 0.35T and Np-59 scintigraphy. Qualitative visual and quantitative analysis of MR data was done by means of intensity measurements and ratios of lesion to liver, kidney, fat, and muscle. Scintigraphic scan data were assigned to concordant, discordant, and indeterminate categories on the basis of visual assessment. The authors' preliminary data suggest that combined morphologic and functional data should result in more optimal tissue characterization, particularly in bilateral lesions