Multislice first-pass cardiac perfusion MRI: validation in a model of myocardial infarction. |
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| Authors: | Frederick H Epstein James F London Dana C Peters Lino M Goncalves Kwabena Agyeman Joni Taylor Robert S Balaban Andrew E Arai |
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| Affiliation: | Laboratory of Cardiac Energetics, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA. fhe6b@virginia.edu |
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| Abstract: | The purpose of this study was to validate a first-pass MRI method for imaging myocardial perfusion with multislice coverage and relatively small analyzable regions of interest (ROIs). A fast gradient-echo (FGRE) sequence with an echo-train (ET) readout was used to achieve multislice coverage, and a high dose of a contrast agent (CA) was used to achieve a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Dogs (N = 6) were studied 1 day after reperfused myocardial infarction, and fluorescent microspheres were used as a standard for perfusion. First-pass MRI correlated well vs. microsphere flow, achieving mean R values of 0.87 (range = 0.82-0.93), 0.71 (range = 0.46-0.85), and 0.72 (range = 0.49-0.95) for subendocardial ROIs, transmural ROIs, and the endocardial-epicardial ratio, respectively. Additionally, analysis of myocardial time-intensity curves (TICs) indicated that 15.8 +/- 6 sectors, corresponding to 260 microl of endocardium, can be analyzed (R(2) > 0.95). |
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| Keywords: | magnetic resonance imaging echo‐planar imaging heart myocardial perfusion canine |
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