Feasibility of Magnetic Resonance Cholangiopancreatography in Dogs—A Post-Mortem Study

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Diseases of the biliary tract and pancreas are common in dogs and occasionally challenging to diagnose accurately. The aim of our study was to examine the feasibility of a modern diagnostic imaging technique, magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography, in cadavers of eight adult dogs. This noninvasive imaging technique is commonly used in humans to visualize the biliary tract and pancreatic ducts and has been found to be feasible also in cats, but its utility in dogs has not been reported to date. We assessed the visibility and measured the diameter of various pancreatobiliary ductal structures using this novel technique, and two other methods were used for comparison. Our study showed that this magnetic resonance imaging technique allows for reliable visualization of the biliary tract. However, fine structures, such as pancreatic ducts with diameters of less than 1 mm, were challenging to assess using our 1.5 Tesla machine. Further studies are warranted to adapt magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography to the diagnostic needs of live dogs. ABSTRACT: Magnetic resonance cholangiopancreatography (MRCP) is commonly used in humans and is also feasible in cats. The aim of this post-mortem study was to investigate the feasibility of MRCP in eight adult dogs by comparing the visibility and measured diameters of the biliary tract and pancreatic ducts in MRCP with those of fluoroscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (FRCP) and corrosion casting. In autopsy, six dogs had no evidence of hepatobiliary disorders, one had pancreatic pathology, and one had biliary pathology. The gallbladder (GB), cystic duct, and common bile duct (CBD) were visible in the MRCP images of all eight dogs. However, the extrahepatic ducts and pancreatic ducts were only variably visible. There was statistical agreement between MRCP and FRCP in measuring the diameters of the GB (fundus and body) and CBD (at papilla and extrahepatic ducts’ junction). The diameter measurements correlated between MRCP and corrosion casting. Our study showed that MRCP is feasible in dogs and allowed for proper visualization of the biliary tract. However, ducts with diameters of <1 mm were difficult to visualize using a 1.5 Tesla MRI machine. Further studies are warranted to apply MRCP in the diagnostic imaging of live dogs.