MR guided right heart catheterization - the NIH experience

Background Realtime MR enables radiation free guidance for right heart catheterization (RHC). In addition to catheter navigation for sampling of invasive pressures and blood oxygen saturations, MR permits concomitant assessment of cardiac chamber volumes and cardiac output with phase contrast flow measurements. By performing repeat measurements under different physiological provocations (e.g. saline volume challenge, inhaled nitric oxide, or exercise), diagnostic yield increases by revealing symptoms and pathologic findings not apparent at rest. Herein we present the NIH experience of MR RHC to date.