The value of magnetic resonance guided cardiac catheterisation.

Correspondence to: Professor Reza Razavi, Cardiac MR Research Group, Division of Imaging Sciences, 5th Floor Thomas Guy House, Guy’s Hospital, London, SE1 9RT, UK; reza. [email protected] . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . C ardiac magnetic resonance (MR) is increasingly replacing diagnostic cardiac catheterisation as a method of assessing cardiac anatomy, measuring blood flow, and quantifying ventricular function, particularly in patients with congenital heart disease. However, diagnostic cardiac catheterisation remains important when measurement of cardiac or vascular pressures is required. Patients with pulmonary hypertension, which is characterised by increased pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR), often undergo multiple x ray guided cardiac catheterisations to assess prognosis and response to medical intervention. Performing such diagnostic cardiac catheterisation procedures under MR guidance has a number of potential benefits, described by Kuehne and colleagues in this issue of Heart. MR guided cardiac catheterisation has been a scientific and technical challenge, with a number of groups trying to demonstrate its feasibility in the last few years. The driving force behind this work comprises the potential benefits of this technique, including reduced x ray dose and acquisition of more accurate physiological information.