Cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) is increasingly used to assess non-invasively the presence and the extent of myocardial ischemia. CMR perfusion has been shown to be superior to nuclear perfusion imaging, allows high-resolution quantitative assessment of myocardial perfusion reserve, has been validated against invasive reference standards and microspheres and therefore has the potential ...

First-pass cardiac MR perfusion (CMRP) imaging allows identification of hypo-perfused areas in the myocardium and therefore helps in early detection of coronary artery disease (CAD). However, its efficacy is often limited by respiratory motion artifacts, especially in stress-induced sequences. These distortions lead to unreliable estimates of perfusion linked parameters, such as the myocardial ...

Methods 123 patients with no obstructive epicardial coronary artery disease, defined by coronary computed tomographic angiogram demonstrating < 30% stenosis, underwent regadenoson CMR 1st-pass perfusion imaging, using 0.05 mmol/kg gadolinium (Gd) followed by rest perfusion imaging (also 0.05 mmol/kg Gd) performed 20 minutes later. The subjects were categorized into 4 groups: normal BMI (between...

Muscle fibers release K(+) into the interstitial space upon recruitment. Increased local interstitial K(+) concentration ([K(+)]) can cause dilation of terminal arterioles, leading to perfusion of downstream capillaries. The possibility that capillary perfusion can be regulated by vascular responses to [K(+)] was examined using a theoretical model. The model takes into account the spatial relat...

0.5 Coronary vasomotion, which controls myocardial perfusion, is closely regulated by myocardial metabolic demand and has been assessed by changes of coronary vascular resistance. Only two decades ago evidence of neural and hormonal control overriding the metabolic control of coronary arterioles, which represent the "resistance vessels" was reported (fig 1). Numerous groups reported persistence...

BACKGROUND Quantitative myocardial perfusion imaging is increasingly used for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease. Quantitative perfusion imaging allows to noninvasively calculate fractional flow reserve (FFR). This so-called relative flow reserve (RFR) is defined as the ratio of hyperemic myocardial blood flow (MBF) in a stenotic area to hyperemic MBF in a normal perfused area. The aim of...

OBJECTIVES We sought to determine the relative accuracy of myocardial contrast echocardiography (MCE) and low-dose dobutamine echocardiography (LDDE) in predicting recovery of left ventricular (LV) function in patients with a recent anterior wall myocardial infarction (MI). BACKGROUND Left ventricular dysfunction after acute MI may be secondary to myocardial stunning or necrosis. Myocardial c...

We present the first in vivo detection of microvascular abnormality in a patient with Friedreich's ataxia (FA) without epicardial coronary artery disease using cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR). The patient had exertional chest pain and dyspnea prompting referral for cardiac evaluation. These symptoms were reproduced during intravenous adenosine infusion, and simultaneous first-pass perfusion im...

Background The subendocardial layer of the myocardium is more sensitive to ischaemia than the subepicaridal layer due to interactions between myocardial contraction and blood supply. The transmural perfusion gradients observed in coronary heart disease (CAD) can be visualised with high spatial resolution myocardial perfusion CMR. These gradients are characterised by the extent and intensity of ...