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Free‐breathing, three‐dimensional coronary artery magnetic resonance angiography: Comparison of sequences
Author(s) -
Weber Oliver M.,
Pujadas Sandra,
Martin Alastair J.,
Higgins Charles B.
Publication year - 2004
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.20141
Subject(s) - steady state free precession imaging , image quality , spiral (railway) , nuclear medicine , magnetic resonance angiography , gradient echo , physics , magnetic resonance imaging , right coronary artery , nuclear magnetic resonance , medicine , coronary angiography , radiology , mathematics , computer science , artificial intelligence , image (mathematics) , cardiology , mathematical analysis , myocardial infarction
Purpose To compare six free‐breathing, three‐dimensional, magnetization‐prepared coronary magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) sequences. Materials and Methods Six bright‐blood sequences were evaluated: Cartesian segmented gradient echo (C‐SGE), radial SGE (R‐SGE), spiral SGE (S‐SGE), spiral gradient echo (S‐GE), Cartesian steady‐state free precession (C‐SSFP), and radial SSFP (R‐SSFP). The right coronary artery (RCA) was imaged in 10 healthy volunteers using all six sequences in randomized order. Images were evaluated by two observers with respect to signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR), contrast‐to‐noise ratio (CNR), visible vessel length, vessel edge sharpness, and vessel diameter. Results C‐SSFP depicted RCA over the longest distance with high vessel sharpness, good SNR, and excellent background suppression. S‐GE provided best SNR and CNR in proximal segments, but more vessel blurring and poorer background suppression, resulting in poor visualization of distal segments. R‐SSFP images showed good background suppression and best vessel sharpness, but only moderate SNR. C‐SGE provided good SNR and reasonable CNR, but lowest vessel sharpness. S‐SGE and R‐SGE visualized the RCA over the smallest distance, mostly due to vessel blurring and low SNR, respectively. Conclusion Overall, Cartesian SSFP provided the best image quality with excellent vessel sharpness, visualization of long vessel segments, and good SNR and CNR. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2004;20:395–402. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.