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CompletedNCT04631718Updated May 9, 2024

MRI QSM Imaging for Iron Overload

An observational study in Hemochromatosis and Iron Overload, sponsored by University of Wisconsin, Madison. Completed at 2 sites in United States. Open to participants aged 5 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2024-05-09.

Sponsored by University of Wisconsin, Madison · Observational

Study type
Observational
Model
Cohort
Time perspective
Prospective
Enrollment
63
Ages
5 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The overall goal of this project is to develop and validate a novel technique for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)-based Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping (QSM) of the abdomen, for non-invasive assessment of liver iron deposition. In this work, study team will develop and optimize advanced data acquisition and image reconstruction methods to enable QSM of the abdomen. Further, investigators will determine the accuracy, repeatability, and reproducibility of abdominal QSM for iron quantification in patients with liver iron overload.

Excessive accumulation of iron in various organs, including the liver, which affects both adult and pediatric populations, is toxic and requires treatment aimed at reducing body iron stores. Accurate assessment of liver iron concentration is critical for the detection and staging of iron overload as well as for longitudinal monitoring during treatment.

In summary, this project will develop a novel MRI-based QSM technique designed for the abdomen and will validate it in pediatric and adult patients with liver iron overload. Upon successful validation, QSM will provide accurate, repeatable, and reproducible quantification of LIC based on a fundamental property of tissue.

02

Conditions studied

  • Hemochromatosis
  • Iron Overload

Keywords

  • Liver iron concentration
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)-based Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping (QSM)
03

In context

Hemochromatosis

55 studies on the registry are indexed under Hemochromatosis; 4 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 63 is close to the median of 70 across 19 observational studies indexed under Hemochromatosis.

Browse Hemochromatosis studies →

Lead sponsor

University of Wisconsin, Madison is the lead sponsor of 1,188 studies on the registry; 181 are open to participants now.

Of its 157 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 118 (75%) have results posted.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
5 Years and older
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No
Sampling method
Non-probability sample

Study population

Patients with known or suspected iron overload will be identified and recruited from the UWHC Hematology Adult and Pediatric clinics or Stanford Hospital and Clinics. Briefly, patients will be identified and recruited in collaboration with patient providers (either by introduction during a clinical visit or by a referral from a physician), using flyers posted in relevant clinics, or from previous related studies where the patient consented to being contacted about future research opportunities.

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • Ages 10 years or older at University of Wisconsin - Madison
  • Age 5 years or older at Stanford
  • Known or suspected iron overload

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Patients with to MRI (e.g. pacemaker, contraindicated metallic implants, etc)
  • Pregnant or trying to become pregnant (as determined by self-report during MRI safety screening)
  • Patients requiring intravenous (IV) conscious sedation for imaging are not eligible; patients requiring mild, oral anxiolytics for the MRI will be allowed to participate as long as the following criteria are met:

    • The subject has their own prescription for the medication.
    • The process is conducted prior to the self-administration of this medication
    • They come to the research visit with a driver
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(2)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

Contraindication

A reason a treatment, test or procedure should not be given to a particular person, such as an allergy, another illness or a medicine they take.

Informed consent

Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.

You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.

05

Study design

Observational model
Cohort
Time perspective
Prospective
Enrollment
63 participants (actual)
Patient registry
No

Groups and cohorts

  • MRI based abdominal QSM

    Participants with known or suspected iron overload with past serum ferritin \>500 will be recruited in this study.

    Radiation: Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)-based Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping (QSM)

Interventions

  • RadiationMagnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)-based Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping (QSM)

    MRI-based QSM methods estimate the susceptibility of tissues based on measuring the magnetic field distortion produced by the tissues themselves. Upon successful validation, MRI-based abdominal QSM will provide accurate, repeatable, and reproducible quantification of Liver iron concentration (LIC) that is independent of the distribution of iron and does not require calibration.

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Establishing the accuracy of MRI-QSM of the liver using SQUID-BLS as a reference

    Determine the accuracy of abdominal QSM to quantify liver iron concentration at 1.5T and 3T, in pediatric and adult patients with liver iron overload, using superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID)-based biomagnetic liver susceptometry (BLS) as the reference.

    Time frame: 1.5 hours

  2. Establishing the repeatability of MRI-QSM of the liver

    Repeatability of MRI-QSM of the liver will be established in both pediatrics and adult participants. Each participant will be scanned at both 1.5T and 3T and at UW will repeat one of the field strengths to assess repeatability. Therefore, each participant at UW will undergo 3 MRI exams and each participant at Stanford 2 MRI exams. Repeatability will not be tested at Stanford in order to avoid exhaustion of the patients (many of whom will be children), and to ensure the completion of acquisitions at both field strengths for validation of accuracy versus SQUID-BLS. Scanning will take 1.5 hour at University of Wisconsin and I hour at Stanford

    Time frame: up to 1.5 hours

  3. Establishing the reproducibility of MRI-QSM of the liver

    The reproducibility of abdominal MRI-based Quantitative Susceptibility Mapping (MRI-QSM) will be characterized across field strengths (1.5Tesla and 3Tesla), in both pediatric and adult participants with iron overload The repeated acquisitions at 1.5T and 3T will enable analysis of reproducibility of MRI-QSM across field strengths. At UW only, participants repeat either the 1.5T or 3T exam, with consideration given to the subject's schedule and magnet availability. Repeat tests will be performed after removing the participants from the magnet and repositioning with new localizer images. Repeatability will not be tested at Stanford in order to avoid exhaustion of the patients (many of whom will be children), and to ensure the completion of acquisitions at both field strengths for validation of accuracy versus SQUID-BLS. Scanning will take 1.5 hour at University of Wisconsin and I hour at Stanford

    Time frame: up to 1.5 hours

  4. Optimizing MRI-based QSM performance by using multiple QSM reconstruction and measurement

    Multiple QSM reconstructions will be applied to each acquired dataset, to evaluate the effect of each reconstruction component on the performance of QSM. Susceptibility measurements will be made by placing a region-of-interest in each of the nine Couinaud segments of the liver. This will allow segment-by-segment analysis as well as whole-liver analysis (by averaging over the 9 segments) of the performance of QSM. The reader performing MRI analysis will be blinded to SQUID results. Scanning will take 1.5 hour at University of Wisconsin and I hour at Stanford.

    Time frame: up to 1.5 hours

  5. MRI-QSM data acquisition with Breath held

    An optimized acquisition will obtain 3D whole liver coverage within a \~20 second breath-hold. Data will be collected at 1.5T and 3T

    Time frame: 1.5 hours

  6. MRI-QSM data acquisition with Free Breathing

    The optimized free-breathing acquisitions (using bellows, butterfly navigators, and 2D sequential acquisitions and requiring 3-5 min each) will be performed. Data will be collected at 1.5T and 3T

    Time frame: 1.5 hours

Secondary outcomes

  1. Comparison of MRI-based QSM of the liver to serum ferritin measurements

    MRI-based QSM of the liver will be compared to serum ferritin measurements to validate MRI-QSM method. MRI-QSM visit will be scheduled within +/-2 days of serum ferritin measurement visit

    Time frame: up to 3.5 hours

07

Study locations

2 sites
  • School of Medicine, Stanford University
    Stanford, California 94305, United States
  • University of Wisconsin
    Madison, Wisconsin 53705, United States
08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reached

Ran from Jan 2022 to primary completion in Apr 2024, 27 months.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Nov 10, 2020
First posted
Nov 17, 2020
StartActual
Jan 18, 2022
Primary completionActual
Apr 29, 2024
CompletionActual
Apr 29, 2024
Last update
May 9, 2024
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on May 9, 2024, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT04631718
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Nov 17, 2020
Start date
Jan 18, 2022
Primary completion
Apr 29, 2024
Completion
Apr 29, 2024
Last update
May 9, 2024

Study contacts

Diego Hernando, PhD
principal investigator · University of Wisconsin, Madison

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
Yes
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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This study is completed, as verified in May 2024. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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