Hepatic attenuation on CT

Changed by Daniel J Bell, 6 Feb 2018

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Hepatic attenuation on CT, reflected by Hounsfield values, depends on a combination of factors including the presence or absence, as well as the phase, of IV contrast administration.

Allowing for all these factors, the mean unenhanced attenuation value is around 55 HU ⁴.

Pathology

Several intrinsic liver pathologies can be attributed a diffuse change in liver attenuation with an amount of hepatic fat being the most prevalent.

Aetiology

Diffusely increased attenuation

deposition of certain metals
- iron overload - deposition in
  - haemochromatosis
  - haemosiderosis
    - thalassaemia
- copper in Wilson disease
glycogen storage disease(es)
medications/drugs
- amiodarone hepatotoxicity: long-term amiodarone administration ^7-8
- gold therapy ⁶
previous Thorotrast administration

Diffusely decreased attenuation

diffuse fatty infiltration (diffuse hepatic steatosis)
diffuse malignant infiltration
diffuse non-malignant infiltrative disease (e.g. hepatic amyloidosis)

~~-<a href="/articles/haemosiderosis">haemosiderosis</a><ul><li><a title="Thalassaemia" href="/articles/thalassaemia">thalassaemia</a></li></ul>~~
+<a href="/articles/haemosiderosis">haemosiderosis</a><ul><li><a href="/articles/thalassaemia">thalassaemia</a></li></ul>

Updates to Synonym Attributes

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