Contrast-dose relation in first-pass myocardial MR perfusion imaging
Authors
- W. Utz
- T. Niendorf
- R. Wassmuth
- D. Messroghli
- R. Dietz
- J. Schulz-Menger
Journal
- Journal of Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Citation
- J Magn Reson Imaging 25 (6): 1131-1135
Abstract
Purpose: To determine the regime of linear contrast enhancement in human first-pass perfusion cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging to improve accuracy in myocardial perfusion quantification. Materials and Methods: A total of 10 healthy subjects were studied on a clinical 1.5T MR scanner. Seven doses of Gd-DTPA ranging from 0.00125 to 0.1 mmol/kg of body weight (b.w.) were administered as equal volumes by rapid bolus injection (6 mL/second). Resting periods of 15 minutes were introduced after delivery of Gd doses >gt;0.01 mmol/kg b.w. For each subject, two series of rest perfusion scans were performed using two different multislice saturation-recovery perfusion sequences. Maximum contrast enhancement and maximum upslope were obtained in the blood pool of the left ventricular (LV) cavity and in the myocardium. The range of linear contrast-dose relation was determined by linear regression analysis. Results: MR signal intensity increased linearly for contrast agent concentrations up to 0.01 mmol/kg b.w. in the LV blood pool and up to 0.05 mmol/kg b.w. in the myocardium. For Gd concentrations exceeding these thresholds the signal intensity response was not linear with respect to the contrast agent dose. Conclusion: Quantitative evaluation of cardiac MR perfusion data needs to account for signal saturation in both the LV blood pool and the myocardium.