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New research on angiography from M. Prompona and co-authors summarized
2009 AUG 4 - (NewsRx.com) -- According to recent research from Athens, Greece, "The purpose of this study was to compare contrast-enhanced (CE) whole-heart coronary magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) at 3.0 T using gadofosveset to noncontrast-enhanced steady-state free precession (SSFP) coronary MRA at 1.5 T. A prospective randomized study was conducted among 20 healthy male volunteers. The same group of subjects underwent CE whole heart MRA at 3,0 T employing a 3D FLASH sequence with IR prepulse after gadofosveset injection as well as noncontrast-enhanced coronary MRA at 1.5 T Using a 3D SSFP sequence with T2-preparation." "Both techniques were performed using prospective ECG-triggering and adaptive respiratory gating. Acquisition time, signal-to-noise ratio of coronary blood, contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) between coronaries and adjacent myocardium or epicardial fat, and image quality were evaluated in each case. A significant increase of the overall CNR between coronary blood and adjacent myocardium was measured on images acquired at 3 T in comparison to 1.5 T. The mean values were 38.9 +/- 19.6 and 26.3 +/- 15.4, respectively (P[r] < 0.005). There was no significant difference in CNR between coronary blood and epicardial fat. The mean image quality for the proximal and mid coronary segments was not statistically different between 1.5 T and 3.0 T (P > 0.05), however, the distal coronary segments were rated significantly higher for the CE MRA at 3.0 T (P = 0.02). The average acquisition time (15.29 +/- 5.73 minutes at 1.5 T vs. 17.29 +/- 5.18 minutes at 3 T) and overall image quality (2.15 +/- 0.49 at 1.5 T vs. 2.35 +/- 0.39 at 3 T) were similar for both methods," wrote M. Prompona and colleagues. The researchers concluded: "CE whole-heart coronary MRA at 3.0 T demonstrated higher overall CNR between coronary blood and myocardium and an improved image quality of the distal coronary segments compared with noncontrast-enhanced SSFP coronary MRA at 1.5 T." Prompona and colleagues published their study in Investigative Radiology (Contrast-Enhanced Whole-Heart MR Coronary Angiography at 3.0 T Using the Intravascular Contrast Agent Gadofosveset. Investigative Radiology, 2009;44(7):369-374). For additional information, contact M. Prompona, Plateon 7, Athens 14561, Greece. Publisher contact information for the journal Investigative Radiology is: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 530 Walnut St., Philadelphia, PA 19106-3621, USA. Keywords: Greece, Athens, Angiography, Angiology, Cardiology, Intravascular, Magnetic Resonance, Radiology. This article was prepared by Life Science Weekly editors from staff and other reports. Copyright 2009, Life Science Weekly via NewsRx.com.
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