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Updated: Aug 9, 2026

Quantification of Mouse Heart Left Ventricular Function, Myocardial Strain, and Hemodynamic Forces by Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance Imaging
11:13

Quantification of Mouse Heart Left Ventricular Function, Myocardial Strain, and Hemodynamic Forces by Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Published on: May 24, 2021

Automated vs. manual assessment of left ventricular function in cardiac multidetector row computed tomography:

Andreas H Mahnken1, Georg Mühlenbruch, Ralf Koos

  • 1Department of Diagnostic Radiology, University Hospital, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstrasse 30, 52074, Aachen, Germany. mahnken@rad.rwth-aachen.de

European Radiology
|April 12, 2006
PubMed

Insights

Semiautomatic and manual contour tracing in cardiac computed tomography (MDCT) accurately calculate left-ventricular (LV) volumes, showing good agreement with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Further improvements in automated detection are needed for parity with manual methods.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiology
  • Medical Imaging
  • Radiology

Background:

  • Accurate calculation of left-ventricular (LV) volumes is crucial for diagnosing and managing cardiac conditions.
  • Cardiac multidetector row computed tomography (MDCT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are key imaging modalities for cardiac assessment.
  • Contour tracing, whether manual or automated, is fundamental for volumetric analysis in cardiac imaging.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare the accuracy of semiautomatic contour detection versus manual contour tracing in cardiac MDCT for calculating LV volumes.
  • To evaluate the agreement of LV volume calculations from cardiac MDCT (using both methods) against cardiac cine-MRI, considered the reference standard.
  • To assess the feasibility of using MDCT for LV volume quantification relative to MRI.

Main Methods:

  • Thirty patients underwent contrast-enhanced cardiac MDCT and cardiac cine-MRI.
  • LV volumes, peak ejection rate, and peak filling rate were calculated from 8 mm short-axis MDCT slices using 3D multiphase reconstruction.
  • Manual and semiautomatic contours were applied to MDCT data; manual contours on cine-MRI served as the reference standard.

Main Results:

  • Good agreement was observed for LV volumes across all methods: manual MDCT (47.1+/-9.4%), semiautomatic MDCT (47.9+/-9.9%), and MRI (48.0+/-10.2%).
  • Analysis of variance showed no significant differences between techniques for most parameters, except for peak filling rate.
  • Bland-Altman plots and Lin's concordance correlation coefficient indicated the best agreement between MRI and manual contour tracing on MDCT.

Conclusions:

  • Both semiautomatic and manual contour tracing in cardiac MDCT are feasible and reliable for calculating LV volumes when compared to MRI.
  • The findings support the use of MDCT for LV volume assessment, with manual tracing showing slightly better concordance with MRI.
  • Further development is required to enhance automated contour detection methods to match the accuracy of manual contour tracing.

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