Reproducibility of cuff-induced hyperemic popliteal artery flow analysis using phase-contrast MRI: Patients With Intermittent Claudication Injected With ALDH Bright Cells (PACE) trial

Background Peripheral artery disease (PAD) is a major consequence of atherosclerosis. Recently, quantitative evaluation of hyperemic arterial flow reserve measured using cuff occlusion has been identified as a method of measuring arterial stiffness. Phase-contrast MRI (PCMRI) is an extensively used and accurate technique to quantify vessel flow. The aim of this study was to assess the interobserver, intra-observer and test-retest reproducibility of hyperemic popliteal arterial flow measurements using PCMRI in a protocol developed for the Cardiovascular Cell Therapy Research Network (CCTRN).