Cardiac function analysis with low field magnetic resonance imaging

The use of low-field-strength magnetic resonance imagers is now becoming possible and offers many opportunities in terms of lower cost, easier siting, and hence greater availability of imaging systems. The authors have investigated the use of one such imager to quantify common functional parameters of the human heart in comparison to those measured using left ventriculography. It is believed that left ventriculography overestimates the left ventricular volumes. The mean volume data illustrates that left ventricular volumes found from left ventriculography tend to be larger than the same volume measured using MRI. This is consistent with the hope that MRI provides a more accurate method for measuring left ventricular volume. The values given illustrate the variability of volume measurements from patient to patient, especially in the diseased population that was studied. The authors noted strong agreement of heart wall motion measurements between cine MR and those from left ventriculography.<>