Biomedical Research

Purpose: Pineapple juice is an oral contrast agent, due to its paramagnetic property, it is used to suppress gastric fluid signal and prevent superimposition artefacts in Magnetic Resonance Cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) examination. The aim of this study is to in vitro investigate the effective usage of pineapple by depicting the signal characteristics of its morphological regions and its signal characteristics.

Materials and Methods: Five naturally harvested pineapple were examined in axial-coronal planes using TSE-T2 (Turbo spin echo) sequences in a 1.5 T MR device. The plant was divided into apical, midcranial, middle, mid-caudal and basal levels. In each level, 10 randomized sampling were obtained from ovary, sepal and peduncle segments using ROI. Pineapple juice was used as control group.

Results: The average signal obtained from a total 50 control group was 58.55 ± 12.47; from sepal, peduncle and ovary segments in 5 pineapple was 27.25 ± 3.90, 194.63 ± 62.38 and 166.2 ± 31.3, respectively (p<0.001, p<0.005). The average signal of sepal segment was lower than control group (p<0.001).

Conclusion: Concentrated pineapple juice that is routinely used in MRCP examination is a mixture of sepal, ovary and peduncle segments which may cause global increase in signal intensity and decrease homogeneity. Sepal parts of the fruit shows lowest signal suppression on MRCP sequences may have effective gastric fluid signal suppression.

Author(s): Hadi Sasani, Arda Kayhan, Mehdi Sasani, Mahmut Sasani
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