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©The Author(s) 2025.
World J Hepatol. Dec 27, 2025; 17(12): 111418
Published online Dec 27, 2025. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v17.i12.111418
Published online Dec 27, 2025. doi: 10.4254/wjh.v17.i12.111418
Table 1 Functional Liver Imaging Score scoring criteria
| Parameter | Score 0 | Score 1 | Score 2 |
| Hepatic enhancement (liver signal intensity vs right kidney) | Hypointense | Isointense | Hyperintense |
| Biliary excretion (presence of contrast in biliary structures) | No excretion | Intrahepatic bile ducts | Common bile duct or duodenum |
| Portal vein signal (portal vein intensity vs liver parenchyma) | Hyperintense | Isointense | Hypointense |
Table 2 Biochemical and imaging characteristics of the study cohort
| Parameter/score | mean ± SD |
| Platelets (× 103/µL) | 126.12 ± 73.48 |
| AST (U/L) | 62.65 ± 54.04 |
| ALT (U/L) | 43.61 ± 38.15 |
| Total bilirubin (mg/dL) | 2.40 ± 2.76 |
| Sodium (mEq/L) | 135.98 ± 4.03 |
| Potassium (mEq/L) | 4.18 ± 0.54 |
| Creatinine (mg/dL) | 0.86 ± 0.23 |
| Albumin (g/dL) | 3.64 ± 0.79 |
| INR | 1.37 ± 0.40 |
| MELD 3.0 score | 13.75 ± 6.14 |
| ALBI score | -2.14 ± 0.83 |
| FIB-4 index | 6.58 ± 6.21 |
| Native SI segment III | 147.25 ± 26.15 |
| Native SI segment VI | 167.20 ± 24 |
| Native SI segment VIII | 153.90 ± 19.57 |
| Native SI caudate lobe | 161.91 ± 22.95 |
| Native SI global | 157.56 ± 21.28 |
| Hepatobiliary SI segment III | 230.75 ± 55.40 |
| Hepatobiliary SI segment VI | 262.60 ± 59.38 |
| Hepatobiliary SI segment VIII | 245.85 ± 50.18 |
| Hepatobiliary SI caudate lobe | 255.50 ± 57.92 |
| Hepatobiliary SI global | 248.68 ± 53.90 |
| HE segment III | 83.50 ± 37.16 |
| HE segment VI | 95.40 ± 43.01 |
| HE segment VIII | 91.95 ± 36.72 |
| HE caudate lobe | 93.59 ± 40.90 |
| HE global | 91.11 ± 38.15 |
Table 3 Correlations among hepatobiliary signal intensity, Functional Liver Imaging Score, clinical scores, liver stiffness, and hepatic venous-portal gradient
| Region | FLIS | Child-Pugh | MELD 3.0 | ALBI | FIB-4 | Liver stiffness | HVPG |
| SI segment III | 0.661a | -0.496a | -0.521a | -0.519a | -0.222a | -0.389a | -0.167 (P = 0.208) |
| SI segment VI | 0.763a | -0.589a | -0.623a | -0.603a | -0.268a | -0.390a | -0.267 (P = 0.094) |
| SI segment VIII | 0.683a | -0.463a | -0.545a | -0.493a | -0.259a | -0.422a | -0.302 (P = 0.067) |
| SI caudate lobe | 0.727a | -0.532a | -0.563a | -0.562a | -0.266a | -0.461a | -0.289 (P = 0.076) |
| Global SI | 0.736a | -0.540a | -0.584a | -0.565a | -0.263a | -0.429a | -0.261 (P = 0.099) |
Table 4 Association between hepatic enhancement and Functional Liver Imaging Score in the whole cohort and subgroups (no prior hepatocellular carcinoma, viral etiology, alcoholic etiology)
| Region | F (ANOVA) | P value | Partial η² | Linear trend F | Linear trend P | Deviation F | Deviation P | Levene’s P |
| Full cohort (n = 100) | ||||||||
| Segment VI | 38.448 | < 0.001 | 0.672 | 190.171 | < 0.001 | 0.518 | 0.723 | 0.062 |
| Segment VIII | 18.960 | < 0.001 | 0.502 | 91.378 | < 0.001 | 0.855 | 0.494 | 0.246 |
| Caudate lobe | 24.369 | < 0.001 | 0.565 | 120.883 | < 0.001 | 0.240 | 0.915 | 0.340 |
| Segment III | 19.393 | < 0.001 | 0.508 | 95.767 | < 0.001 | 0.299 | 0.878 | 0.157 |
| Global HE | 28.060 | < 0.001 | 0.599 | 138.949 | < 0.001 | 0.337 | 0.852 | 0.072 |
| Non-HCC subgroup (n = 80) | ||||||||
| Segment VI | 36.974 | < 0.001 | 0.714 | 179.371 | < 0.001 | 1.375 | 0.251 | 0.086 |
| Segment VIII | 16.262 | < 0.001 | 0.524 | 77.487 | < 0.001 | 0.956 | 0.437 | 0.457 |
| Caudate lobe | 23.305 | < 0.001 | 0.612 | 114.939 | < 0.001 | 0.396 | 0.811 | 0.429 |
| Segment III | 17.696 | < 0.001 | 0.545 | 85.235 | < 0.001 | 0.811 | 0.522 | 0.174 |
| Global HE | 26.237 | < 0.001 | 0.639 | 128.016 | < 0.001 | 0.792 | 0.534 | 0.125 |
| Viral subgroup (n = 53) | ||||||||
| Segment VI | 15.968 | < 0.001 | 0.571 | 61.566 | < 0.001 | 0.769 | 0.517 | 0.017 |
| Segment VIII | 6.230 | < 0.001 | 0.342 | 22.909 | < 0.001 | 0.671 | 0.574 | 0.547 |
| Caudate lobe | 11.256 | < 0.001 | 0.484 | 43.029 | < 0.001 | 0.665 | 0.578 | 0.061 |
| Segment III | 8.940 | < 0.001 | 0.426 | 34.033 | < 0.001 | 0.576 | 0.634 | 0.152 |
| Global HE | 11.244 | < 0.001 | 0.484 | 43.239 | < 0.001 | 0.579 | 0.632 | 0.035 |
| Alcoholic subgroup (n = 41) | ||||||||
| Segment VI | 22.325 | < 0.001 | 0.761 | 103.808 | < 0.001 | 1.955 | 0.123 | 0.751 |
| Segment VIII | 9.116 | < 0.001 | 0.566 | 41.884 | < 0.001 | 0.925 | 0.461 | 0.636 |
| Caudate lobe | 7.551 | < 0.001 | 0.519 | 36.680 | < 0.001 | 0.269 | 0.896 | 0.849 |
| Segment III | 8.439 | < 0.001 | 0.566 | 38.439 | < 0.001 | 0.938 | 0.453 | 0.174 |
| Global HE | 12.871 | < 0.001 | 0.648 | 60.830 | < 0.001 | 0.881 | 0.485 | 0.803 |
Table 5 Correlations among hepatic enhancement, Functional Liver Imaging Score, and clinical scores across the entire cohort and subgroups
| Cohort | Region | FLIS | Child-Pugh | MELD 3.0 | ALBI | FIB-4 |
| Full cohort (n = 100) | HE segment VI | 0.819a | -0.611a | -0.683a | -0.624a | -0.306a |
| HE segment VIII | 0.718a | -0.469a | -0.584a | -0.490a | -0.300a | |
| HE caudate lobe | 0.765a | -0.592a | -0.634a | -0.590a | -0.312a | |
| HE segment III | 0.741a | -0.580a | -0.625a | -0.579a | -0.253a | |
| Global HE | 0.797a | -0.589a | -0.658a | -0.599a | -0.308a | |
| Non-HCC (n = 80) | HE segment VI | 0.858a | -0.616a | -0.649a | -0.624a | -0.301a |
| HE segment VIII | 0.716a | -0.475a | -0.551a | -0.463a | -0.278a | |
| HE caudate lobe | 0.790a | -0.601a | -0.599a | -0.576a | -0.302a | |
| HE segment III | 0.761a | -0.582a | -0.583a | -0.568a | -0.265a | |
| Global HE | 0.820a | -0.596a | -0.622a | -0.591a | -0.301a | |
| Viral (n = 53) | HE segment VI | 0.656a | -0.423a | -0.574a | -0.444a | -0.287a |
| HE segment VIII | 0.589a | -0.320a | -0.542a | -0.410a | -0.287a | |
| HE caudate lobe | 0.633a | -0.456a | -0.533a | 0.485a | -0.342a | |
| HE segment III | 0.610a | -0.471a | -0.631a | -0.530a | -0.312a | |
| Global HE | 0.649a | -0.433a | -0.594a | -0.485a | -0.318a | |
| Alcoholic (n = 41) | HE segment VI | 0.834a | -0.603a | -0.611a | -0.594a | -0.148 (q = 0.418) |
| HE segment VIII | 0.714a | -0.412a | -0.431a | -0.396a | -0.198 (q = 0.269) | |
| HE caudate lobe | 0.739a | -0.537a | -0.513a | -0.476a | -0.074 (q = 0.682) | |
| HE segment III | 0.707a | -0.530a | -0.414a | -0.458a | -0.013 (q = 0.936) | |
| Global HE | 0.796a | -0.546a | -0.531a | -0.511a | -0.123 (q = 0.492) |
Table 6 Correlations among hepatic enhancement, liver stiffness, and hepatic venous-portal gradient across the entire cohort and subgroups
| Cohort | Region | Liver stiffness (ρ/q) | HVPG (ρ/q) |
| Full cohort (n = 100) | HE segment VI | -0.428/0.002a | -0.345/0.049a |
| HE segment VIII | -0.503/0.001a | -0.389/0.042a | |
| HE caudate lobe | -0.477/0.001a | -0.362/0.049a | |
| HE segment III | -0.418/0.002a | -0.232/0.127 | |
| Global HE | -0.470/0.001a | -0.340/0.049a | |
| Non-HCC (n = 80) | HE segment VI | -0.358/0.014a | -0.200/0.261 |
| HE segment VIII | -0.470/0.003a | -0.235/0.255 | |
| HE caudate lobe | -0.447/0.003a | -0.169/0.261 | |
| HE segment III | -0.399/0.008a | -0.049/0.416 | |
| Global HE | -0.430/0.003a | -0.167/0.261 | |
| Viral (n = 53) | HE segment VI | -0.211/0.127 | 0.160/0.492 |
| HE segment VIII | -0.328/0.059 | -0.081/0.492 | |
| HE caudate lobe | -0.217/0.120 | -0.042/0.492 | |
| HE segment III | -0.323/0.059 | 0.071/0.492 | |
| Global HE | -0.286/0.120 | 0.093/0.492 | |
| Alcoholic (n = 41) | HE segment VI | -0.513/0.022a | -0.552/0.061 |
| HE segment VIII | -0.604/0.020a | -0.533/0.061 | |
| HE caudate lobe | -0.533/0.020a | -0.508/0.061 | |
| HE segment III | -0.455/0.038a | -0.433/0.092 | |
| Global HE | -0.552/0.020a | -0.524/0.061 |
Table 7 Global hepatic enhancement variation by clinical outcomes across the whole cohort and subgroups
| Cohort | Outcome | Group | Mean HE ± SD | t (df) | P value | q value | Cohen’s d |
| Full cohort (n = 100) | HCC development | No HCC | 87.48 ± 37.86 | -1.662 (98) | 0.100 | 0.100 | 0.384 |
| HCC | 102 ± 37.71 | ||||||
| Decompensation | No decompensation | 100.87 ± 34.30 | 3.526 (98) | 0.001a | 0.003a | 0.717 | |
| Decompensation | 74.48 ± 39.07 | ||||||
| Mortality | Survivor | 94.34 ± 36.65 | 2.231 (98) | 0.028a | 0.042a | 0.625 | |
| Dead | 69.52 ± 42.47 | ||||||
| Non-HCC (n = 80) | HCC development | No HCC | 81.12 ± 37.64 | -1.448 (78) | 0.152 | 0.152 | 0.379 |
| HCC | 95 ± 35.45 | ||||||
| Decompensation | No decompensation | 93.66 ± 33.63 | 2.478 (78) | 0.015a | 0.026a | 0.552 | |
| Decompensation | 73.50 ± 39.16 | ||||||
| Mortality | Survivor | 95.26 ± 37.02 | 2.622 (78) | 0.011a | 0.033a | 0.941 | |
| Dead | 63 ± 31.29 | ||||||
| Viral cirrhosis (n = 53) | HCC development | No HCC | 98.44 ± 37.70 | -1.713 (51) | 0.093 | 0.140 | 0.517 |
| HCC | 116.69 ± 32.74 | ||||||
| Decompensation | No decompensation | 105.57 ± 34.89 | 1.293 (51) | 0.202 | 0.303 | 0.368 | |
| Decompensation | 91.56 ± 39.24 | ||||||
| Mortality | Survivor | 105.99 ± 34.54 | 1.181 (51) | 0.243 | 0.243 | 0.448 | |
| Dead | 83.44 ± 62.18 | ||||||
| Alcoholic cirrhosis (n = 41) | HCC development | No HCC | 77.57 ± 33.92 | 0.523 (39) | 0.604 | 0.604 | 0.218 |
| HCC | 70.78 ± 28.05 | ||||||
| Decompensation | No decompensation | 94.49 ± 27.14 | 5.523 (39) | 0.001a | 0.003a | 1.095 | |
| Decompensation | 61.57 ± 32.72 | ||||||
| Mortality | Survivor | 79.88 ± 32.01 | 1.357 (39) | 0.182 | 0.273 | 0.505 | |
| Dead | 63.33 ± 33.40 |
Table 8 Cox regression analyses for prediction of decompensation and mortality (per 10-unit hepatic enhancement increase)
| Model | Endpoint | Predictor | HR (95%CI) | P (raw) | q (FDR) |
| Univariate | Decompensation | HE segment VI | 0.77 (0.70-0.85) | < 0.001 | < 0.001 |
| HE segment VIII | 0.81 (0.73-0.90) | < 0.001 | < 0.001 | ||
| HE segment III | 0.79 (0.70-0.88) | < 0.001 | < 0.001 | ||
| HE caudate lobe | 0.79 (0.72-0.87) | < 0.001 | < 0.001 | ||
| HE global | 0.77 (0.69-0.86) | < 0.001 | < 0.001 | ||
| Mortality | HE segment VI | 0.78 (0.68-0.90) | < 0.001 | 0.004 | |
| HE segment VIII | 0.86 (0.74-1.01) | 0.065 | 0.065 | ||
| HE segment III | 0.75 (0.62-0.90) | 0.002 | 0.005 | ||
| HE caudate lobe | 0.80 (0.69-0.93) | 0.004 | 0.005 | ||
| HE global | 0.79 (0.67-0.93) | 0.004 | 0.005 | ||
| Adjusted (MELD3.0, etiology, prior HCC)1 | Decompensation | HE segment VI | 0.87 (0.77-0.99) | 0.029 | 0.145 |
| HE segment VIII | 0.93 (0.83-1.05) | 0.248 | 0.310 | ||
| HE segment III | 0.91 (0.80-1.04) | 0.178 | 0.237 | ||
| HE caudate lobe | 0.92 (0.81-1.04) | 0.178 | 0.237 | ||
| HE global | 0.89 (0.79-1.02) | 0.108 | 0.180 | ||
| Mortality | HE segment VI | 0.87 (0.69-1.09) | 0.227 | 0.695 | |
| HE segment VIII | 1.07 (0.87-1.30) | 0.417 | 0.695 | ||
| HE segment III | 0.88 (0.69-1.11) | 0.284 | 0.710 | ||
| HE caudate lobe | 0.97 (0.78-1.20) | 0.733 | 0.733 | ||
| HE global | 0.94 (0.74-1.20) | 0.627 | 0.783 |
Table 9 Diagnostic performance of hepatic enhancement, Functional Liver Imaging Score, and clinical scores for predicting decompensation: Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis results1
| Marker | AUC (95%CI) | Youden cut-off | Se | Sp | PPV | NPV | Δ HE vs FLIS (q) | Δ HE vs MELD 3.0 (q) | Δ HE vs ALBI (q) |
| FLIS | 0.79 (0.69-0.88) | 4.5 | 0.76 | 0.76 | 0.57 | 0.88 | - | - | - |
| MELD 3.0 | 0.73 (0.63-0.86 | 18.5 | 0.43 | 0.94 | 0.8 | 0.74 | - | - | - |
| ALBI | 0.77 (0.68-0.86 | -2.1 | 0.70 | 0.73 | 0.60 | 0.81 | - | - | - |
| HE segment VI | 0.74 (0.62-0.85) | 75 | 0.68 | 0.86 | 0.64 | 0.88 | -0.05 (0.123) | 0.01 (0.964) | -0.04 (0.580) |
| HE segment VIII | 0.68 (0.55-0.79) | 67.5 | 0.43 | 0.86 | 0.64 | 0.72 | -0.08 (0.014) | -0.05 (0.400) | -0.09 (0.400) |
| HE segment III | 0.68 (0.56-0.79) | 65 | 0.51 | 0.82 | 0.63 | 0.74 | -0.08 (0.003) | -0.05 (0.400) | -0.09 (0.400) |
| HE caudate lobe | 0.70 (0.59-0.81) | 82.5 | 0.60 | 0.76 | 0.60 | 0.76 | -0.11 (0.017) | -0.03 (0.616) | -0.07 (0.400) |
| HE global | 0.71 (0.60-0.82) | 86.3 | 0.70 | 0.71 | 0.59 | 0.81 | -0.11 (0.023) | -0.02 (0.671) | -0.06 (0.400) |
Table 10 Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis results for the diagnostic performance of hepatic enhancement, Functional Liver Imaging Score, and clinical scores in predicting mortality1
| Marker | AUC (95%CI) | Youden cut-off | Se | Sp | PPV | NPV | Δ HE vs FLIS (q) | Δ HE vs MELD 3.0 (q) | Δ HE vs ALBI (q) |
| FLIS | 0.81 (0.69-0.93) | 4.5 | 0.92 | 0.64 | 0.28 | 0.98 | - | - | - |
| MELD 3.0 | 0.79 (0.64-0.94) | 15.5 | 0.77 | 0.75 | 0.31 | 0.96 | - | - | - |
| ALBI | 0.82 (0.69-0.95) | -1.4 | 0.69 | 0.85 | 0.41 | 0.95 | - | - | - |
| HE segment VI | 0.74 (0.57-0.91) | 75 | 0.85 | 0.74 | 0.32 | 0.97 | -0.07 (0.293) | -0.05 (0.369) | -0.08 (0.220) |
| HE segment VIII | 0.64 (0.46-0.82) | 75 | 0.62 | 0.74 | 0.26 | 0.93 | -0.18 (0.025) | -0.15 (0.082) | -0.18 (0.081) |
| HE segment III | 0.71 (0.56-0.87) | 87.5 | 0.77 | 0.69 | 0.28 | 0.95 | -0.09 (0.188) | -0.08 (0.267) | -0.11 (0.220) |
| HE caudate lobe | 0.71 (0.55-0.87) | 82.5 | 0.77 | 0.69 | 0.27 | 0.95 | -0.09 (0.140) | -0.08 (0.220) | -0.11 (0.170) |
| HE global | 0.71 (0.54-0.88) | 86.3 | 0.85 | 0.62 | 0.25 | 0.96 | -0.17 (0.140) | -0.08 (0.220) | -0.11 (0.170) |
Table 11 Incremental performance summary of hepatic enhancement models vs the reference model, n (%)
| Endpoint | Horizon (months) | Added variable to reference model | Categorical NRI (95%CI) | NRI event1 | NRI Non-event1 | Continuous NRI % (95%CI) | ΔAUC2 | ΔBrier2 |
| Decompensation | 12 months | + HE segment VI | 0.0 (-13.6; 12.9) | - | - | -13.6 (-58.7; 31.0) | -0.002 | +0.001 |
| + HE global | 0.0 (-14.6; 14.3) | - | - | +0.34 (-44.3; 45.5) | -0.003 | +0.0008 | ||
| 24 months | + HE segment VI | +2.9 (0.0; 7.6) | 0.0 | +2.9 | +9.5 (-33.1; 51.2) | +0.002 | -0.0006 | |
| + HE global | +7.1 (1.5; 13.9) | 0.0 | +7.1 | +21.9 (-20.6; 62.4) | +0.0029 | -0.00038 | ||
| Mortality | 12 months | + HE segment VI | +30.7 (1.0; 68.8) | +28.6 | +2.2 | +13.7 (-68.0; 94.3) | +0.012 | +0.0001 |
| + HE global | +31.8 (2.0; 69.9) | +28.6 | +3.2 | +24.4 (-58.8; 107.4) | +0.011 | -0.0011 | ||
| 24 months | + HE segment VI | +5.6 (-23.9; 35.6) | 0.0 | +5.6 | +12.2 (-53.4; 76.6) | +0.012 | +0.0005 | |
| + HE global | +6.7 (-24.4; 36.7) | 0.0 | +6.7 | +41.1 (-26.3; 107.9) | +0.006 | -0.0004 |
Table 12 Quantitative decision-curve analysis at prespecified thresholds (hepatic enhancement models vs reference model)1
| Endpoint | Horizon (months) | Added variable to reference model | Threshold | ΔNB (95%CI) | Net reduction per 100 |
| Decompensation | 12 months | + HE global | 0.10 | -0.0020 (-0.0056; 0.001) | -2 |
| 24 months | + HE global | 0.10 | +0.0011 (0.000; 0.0033) | 1 | |
| 24 months | + HE global | 0.20 | +0.0100 (0.0025; 0.020) | 4 | |
| Mortality | 12 months | + HE segment VI | 0.10 | +0.0110 (0.000; 0.032) | 10 |
| 12 months | + HE global | 0.10 | +0.0120 (0.000; 0.033) | 11 | |
| 12 months | + HE global | 0.20 | +0.0225 (0.000; 0.055) | 9 | |
| 24 months | + HE global | 0.10 | +0.0067 (0.0011; 0.0133) | 6 |
Table 13 Intrareader agreement on region of interest measurements (n = 100)
| Parameter | ICC | CV% | Bias | LoA (95%) |
| Native SI | ||||
| Segment VI | 0.927 | 3.2 | -1.05 | -18.57 to 16.47 |
| Segment VIII | 0.874 | 3.8 | -3.50 | -23.27 to 16.27 |
| Caudate lobe | 0.961 | 2.6 | 0.00 | -12.61 to 12.61 |
| Segment III | 0.928 | 4.6 | -0.35 | -20.06 to 19.36 |
| Global SI | 0.955 | 2.3 | -1.23 | -13.77 to 11.32 |
| Hepatobiliary SI | ||||
| Segment VI | 0.990 | 2.4 | -0.20 | -16.62 to 16.22 |
| Segment VIII | 0.990 | 2.2 | -2.90 | -16.84 to 11.04 |
| Caudate lobe | 0.993 | 1.8 | 0.20 | -13.15 to 13.55 |
| Segment III | 0.988 | 3.2 | -1.50 | -18.19 to 15.19 |
| Global SI | 0.995 | 1.8 | -1.10 | -11.33 to 9.13 |
| HE | ||||
| Segment VI | 0.955 | 14.9 | 0.85 | -25.02 to 26.72 |
| Segment VIII | 0.941 | 12.1 | 0.60 | -24.98 to 26.18 |
| Caudate lobe | 0.974 | 9.4 | 0.20 | -18.22 to 18.62 |
| Segment III | 0.943 | 14.8 | -1.15 | -26.02 to 23.72 |
| Global HE | 0.974 | 9.3 | 0.12 | -17.25 to 17.50 |
- Citation: Stanciu BI, Iojiban M, Morariu-Barb A, Caraiani C, Procopet B, Stefanescu H, Lupsor-Platon M. Hepatic enhancement and signal intensity analysis on magnetic resonance imaging as prognostic biomarkers in advanced chronic liver disease. World J Hepatol 2025; 17(12): 111418
- URL: https://www.wjgnet.com/1948-5182/full/v17/i12/111418.htm
- DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4254/wjh.v17.i12.111418
