Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death in the United States. Coronary magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) has the potential to become a non-invasive clinical alternative to diagnostic coronary catheterization, with an attendant reduction in both morbidity and cost. We propose that the combination of breath-hold 3D MRA, first-pass contrast enhancement, and partially parallel data acquisition, will provide unprecedented flexibility and robustness for coronary artery MRA, and help to establish it as a clinically useful test.
The specific aims are: 1a) To implement breath-hold 3D MRA so that a volumetric study with a temporal window of 100 msec or less, and 0.5 mm or better in-plane spatial resolution, can be obtained. 1b) To implement the SMASH technique so as to improve temporal or spatial resolution in 3D MRA by a factor of 2-8. 2) To optimize the enhancement of the coronary arteries using contrast agents. To additionally test the feasibility of imaging the entire coronary tree in a single breath-hold using multiplanar, multiangle contrast-enhanced 3D MRA. 3) To evaluate the use of these techniques in a series of patients with documented coronary artery disease. The goal is to optimize the MRA method and to determine if the use of contrast agents provides any clinical benefit.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
7R01HL060708-02
Application #
6347152
Study Section
Diagnostic Radiology Study Section (RNM)
Project Start
1999-09-01
Project End
2003-08-31
Budget Start
2000-07-01
Budget End
2000-08-31
Support Year
2
Fiscal Year
1999
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
Evanston Northwestern Healthcare Research Ins
Department
Type
DUNS #
City
Evanston
State
IL
Country
United States
Zip Code
60201
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