Diffusion tensor imaging beyond brains: Applications in abdominal and pelvic organs

Core Tip

Core tip: As a newly developed and advanced technique of functional magnetic resonance imaging, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) measures the diffusion properties including anisotropy. After its successful application in brains, technical advances have now enabled DTI in abdominal and pelvic organs. We herein give a systematic overview of clinical application of DTI in abdominal and pelvic organs such as liver, pancreas, kidneys, prostate, uterus, etc. DTI appears to be more valuable in the evaluation of diffused diseases of organs with highly directionally arranged structures, such as the assessment of function impairment of native and transplanted kidneys. However, the utility of DTI to diagnose focal lesions remains limited. It is suggested that DTI parameters might potentially depict certain pathologic characterization such as cell density.