Congenital cardiovascular malformations: noninvasive imaging by MRI in neonates

Owing largely to advances in fetal echocardiography, in most developed countries the diagnosis of severe congenital heart disease (CHD) is now made during gestation, and delivery is electively planned in hospitals that have the facilities and expertise to manage these patients, with magnetic resonance (MR) imaging performing an important complementary role. MR imaging as a sole imaging modality for comprehensive presurgical evaluation is also increasingly being explored. This article focuses on the imaging of neonatal CHD by MR, followed by a brief discussion of the safety of gadolinium-based contrast agents in this age group.