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MRI for the evaluation of regional myocardial perfusion in an experimental animal model
Author(s) -
Lombardi Massimo,
Jones Richard A.,
Westby Jørgen,
Kvaærness Jørn,
Torheim Geir,
Michelassi Claudio,
L'Abbate Antonio,
Rinck Peter A.
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
journal of magnetic resonance imaging
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.563
H-Index - 160
eISSN - 1522-2586
pISSN - 1053-1807
DOI - 10.1002/jmri.1880070610
Subject(s) - correlation coefficient , perfusion , ventricle , bolus (digestion) , coefficient of variation , intensity (physics) , blood flow , medicine , nuclear medicine , cardiology , chemistry , mathematics , statistics , physics , chromatography , quantum mechanics
Myocardial perfusion was assessed in nine pigs using ultrafast gradient‐echo MRI (.5 T, 15‐mT/m gradients) at different levels of myocardial blood flow (range, .005–1.84 ml/min/g), generated either by adenosine infusion or by a mechanical occluder, and measured independently using radiolabeled microspheres. Sixty‐four consecutive, ECG‐triggered, diastolic, short axis images of the left ventricle were obtained during intravenous bolus injections ( y = 30) of .05 mmol/kg of gadopentetate dimeglumine. Relative changes in peak intensity, time to peak intensity, washin slope, correlation coefficient, and cross‐correlation coefficient were computed from the time‐intensity curves obtained from four regions of interest, namely septal, anterior, lateral, and inferior walls. The values from the inferior wall acted as reference for evaluating relative changes in the other three regions. The cross‐correlation coefficient ( P < .001, r = 60) and the peak intensity ( P < .001, r = .72) showed the best correlation with myocardial blood flow. The washin slope showed a weak positive trend ( P < .05), but the low value of r ( r = .28) indicated that the use of this parameter to predict flow was invalid; the correlation coefficient and time to peak intensity were not correlated ( P = ns). In conclusion, this study shows that it is possible to evaluate relative myocardial perfusion after the first pass of a an intravenously injected bolus of gadopentetate dimeglumine, using dynamic MRI on a conventional medium field MRI system. The cross‐correlation coefficient and the peak intensity resulted in more efficient parameters to evaluate relative inhom‐ogeneity of regional myocardial perfusion.