HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Figures Only Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Herborn, C. U. Articles by Naul, L. G. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Herborn, C. U. Articles by Naul, L. G. Social Bookmarking                      What's this? Hotlight (NEW!) What's Hotlight?

MR Angiography of the Renal Arteries: Intraindividual Comparison of Double-Dose Contrast Enhancement at 1.5 T with Standard Dose at 3 T

¹ Department of Radiology, Scott and White Clinic and Hospital, Temple, TX.
² Present address: Medical Prevention Center Hamburg, Medical University Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Falkenried 88, 20251 Hamburg, Germany.

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of this study was to compare prospectively and within subjects use of 0.1 mmol/kg of gadodiamide at 3 T with use of 0.2 mmol/kg of gadodiamide at 1.5 T for MR angiography of the renal arteries.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS. Twenty-two patients (14 men, eight women; mean age, 66.5 years) underwent two MR angiographic examinations of the renal arteries separated by at least 24 hours on whole-body 1.5- and 3-T MRI systems with a phase-encoded 3D spoiled breath-hold pulse sequence. Two radiologists blinded to the dose of contrast material assessed all image data in consensus for renal arterial disease and for image quality on a five-point Likert-type scale. Quantitative evaluation (vessel signal-to-noise ratio and vessel-muscle contrast-to-noise ratio) was performed by a third radiologist.

RESULTS. Five renal arterial stenoses were detected with both techniques. The difference in mean image quality for the two doses and field strengths was not statistically significant. Overall vessel length and intraparenchymal branches, however, were better visualized with the double dose at 1.5 T. Signal-to-noise and contrast-to-noise ratios were significantly higher (both, p < 0.05) with the double dose at 1.5 T (125.7 and 64.2, respectively) compared with the standard dose at 3 T (112.3 and 59.7).

CONCLUSION. MR angiography can be performed with high diagnostic image quality at 3 T with 0.1 mmol/kg of gadodiamide. Signal-to-noise and contrast-to-noise ratios are higher with a double dose at 1.5 T.

Keywords: high magnetic field strength • MR angiography • renal arterial stenosis

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?