MR angiography of the coronary arteries

Coronary vessels have been the most difficult regions to demonstrate by magnetic resonance (MR) imaging because of their motion with respiration and heart beat. MR coronary angiography may be utilized for evaluation of the coronary arteries. The purposes of the present study were to demonstrate coronary arteries in normal volunteers by using a fast MR imaging technique and to evaluate the feasibility of this imaging technique. Thirteen healthy volunteers in a prone position were imaged with a 1.5 Tesla unit by using an ECG-gated fat-suppressed Turbo fast low-angle shot (FLASH) sequence with k-space segmentation. The imaging time for one slice was approximately 15-23 seconds, within one breath-hold. The left main coronary trunk (LMT), left anterior descending (LAD), circumflex (LCX), and right coronary (RC) arteries were imaged at rates of 92.3, 100, 92.3, and 84.6%, respectively. Diameters of the LMT, LAD, LCX, and RC in proximal portions were 5.2 +/- 1.1, 3.2 +/- 1.3, 2.2 +/- 0.6, and 4.0 +/- 1.6 mm, respectively. The segmented Turbo FLASH technique was able to image the normal coronary arteries, and is a promising method by which to evaluate coronary artery diseases.