Liver-heart imaging in evaluating hepatic focal defect.

An edge defect in the superior area of the left lobe is difficult to evaluate on the liver image. Eighty normal liver-heart images showed no focal separation between liver and heart images. Four cases with suspicious edge defects in the superior area of the left lobe were also studied with liver-heart imaging. One case was well demonstrated to be due to right ventricular compression of the liver without focal separation of the liver-heart images. Three cases showed focal separation of the liver-heart images. One defect was diagnosed as amebic abscess and showed enlargement on the followup images. The other two cases were proven to have liver metastasis. Liver-heart imaging is a reliable technique in evaluating a suspicious defect in the superior area of the left lobe of the liver.