Quantitative susceptibility mapping for characterization of renal tissue pathology in autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD)

Motivation: Current MRI-based approaches for assessment of the complications related to the ADPKD (hemorrhage and calcifications) suffer from low specificity due to the complex and nonlinear dependence of T1/T2 relaxation times on tissue composition. Goal(s): The aim of this study is to assess QSM as an enrichment biomarker suited for unambiguous differentiation of various complex ADPKD cysts. Approach: We perform a cross-sectional study in ADPKD subjects categorizing complex cysts based on their appearance on QSM and assessing their prevalence in patient population. Results: The results of our imaging study demonstrate that QSM can provide complimentary characterization of cyst composition and visualize calcifications within kidneys. Impact: Our results indicate that QSM can identify unique susceptibility properties of complex cysts unattainable with traditional imaging approaches, which may serve as an enrichment biomarker for ADPKD progression and the development of cyst complications.