Assessment of intracranial collateral flow by using dynamic arterial spin labeling MRA and transcranial color-coded duplex ultrasound.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE To evaluate the potential of a new dynamic MRA sequence (DynAngio) based on arterial spin labeling for the assessment of intracranial collateral flow. METHODS Twelve patients with unilateral internal carotid artery obstruction were investigated. Different patterns of collateral flow were compared between DynAngio, transcranial color-coded duplex ultrasound, and time-of-flight MRA. RESULTS There was a good agreement between the methods, with sensitivities between 80% and 90%. Small collateral vessels were detected more frequently with DynAngio compared to time-of-flight MRA. CONCLUSIONS DynAngio provides anatomic and similar to transcranial color-coded duplex ultrasound functional information on collateral flow for the assessment of intracranial hemodynamics.