Stroboscopic NMR microscopy of the carotid artery

The non-invasive measurement of vascular dynamics and elasticity is critical in understanding haemodynamic conditions of cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension and atherosclerosis. Although there are numerous invasive and in vitro techniques for such measurements, until now non-invasive methods have been limited. We have now obtained stroboscopic NMR images of the carotid arteries of 80-g rats. The change in the cross-sectional area of arteries of diameter approximately 600-800 microns was correlated with the change in absolute blood pressure. These are the first microimages of a dynamic system and enable the direct visualization of compliance, the non-invasive measurement of Young's modulus, the direct determination of the local effects of vasoconstrictors and vasodilators and the mapping of the entire cardiac cycle.