Cardiac susceptibility artifacts arising from the heart-lung interface

Cardiac MRI studies often show susceptibility artifacts along the inferoapical myocardial margin in both human and in vivo animal experiments at field strengths of 1.5T and greater. This study was designed to determine the cause of these artifacts in porcine myocardium at 3T. Gradient echo images were obtained under various anatomic and physiologic conditions to systematically study potential sources of local susceptibility gradients. Lung resection in the open-chested, euthanized swine was the only intervention that eliminated the artifact. The data suggest that in the porcine model, the heart-lung interface is the primary cause of these artifacts. Magn Reson Med 45:341-345, 2001.