OBJECTIVE The purpose of this work was to develop functional parameters to analyze regional cardiac function using ECG-gated 99mTc-tetrofosmin SPECT. Our goal was to develop a methodology that used slice thickness correction, the generation of a time-activity curve and a polar map. METHODS Fourteen normal patients without evidence of coronary artery disease were studied. One hour after intrav...

OBJECTIVE Relationships between myocardial scintigraphic parameters and renal function have not been fully determined. We investigated correlations between estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and left ventricular (LV) diastolic function using stress electrocardiographic (ECG)-gated myocardial single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). METHODS We enrolled 136 consecutive patie...

J. C. Carr, D. N. Sandman, K. O'Hara, C. Rocha, T. Cashen, O. Simonetti, R. Kroeker, T. J. Carroll Department of Radiology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States, Siemens Medical Solutions, Chicago, IL, United States Introduction: Time-resolved subsecond contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography (SS-MRA), which utilizes acquisition times of 700-...

BACKGROUND Three dimensional echocardiography (3DE) approaches the accuracy of cardiac magnetic resonance in measuring left ventricular (LV) volumes and ejection fraction (EF). The multibeat modality in comparison to single-beat (SB) requires breath-hold technique and regular heart rhythm which could limit the use of this technique in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) due to stitching arti...

Late Gadolinium-Enhanced Cardiac MRI (LGE CMRI) is a non-invasive technique, which has shown promise in detecting native and post-ablation atrial scarring. To visualize the scarring, a precise segmentation of the left atrium (LA) and pulmonary veins (PVs) anatomy is performed as a first step—usually from an ECG gated CMRI roadmap acquisition—and the enhanced scar regions from the LGE CMRI image...

A58-year-old man without a prior medical history was admitted for acute chest pain associated with ST depression in leads Vl, V5, V6, and D1 with elevated serum levels of troponin and creatine kinase (peak creatine kinase level, 487 IU). A moderate-sized non–Q-wave myocardial infarction was diagnosed, and initial medical treatment included -blockers, aspirin, and heparin. A 16-slice CT scan was...

BACKGROUND 18F-Fluoride positron emission tomography (PET) and computed tomography (CT) can measure disease activity and progression in aortic stenosis. Our objectives were to optimize the methodology, analysis, and scan-rescan reproducibility of aortic valve 18F-fluoride PET-CT imaging. METHODS AND RESULTS Fifteen patients with aortic stenosis underwent repeated 18F-fluoride PET-CT. We compa...

BACKGROUND Because of limited surgical field, minimally invasive coronary artery bypass grafting (MIDCAB) requires anastomosis to the distal portion of the left anterior descending artery (LAD) of the left internal thoracic artery (LITA) with the heart beating. Though the diameters of these arteries are very small, it is unknown whether blood flow sufficient for the LAD territory is obtained by...

To evaluate the capability of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the detection and characterization of alterations in signal intensity and T2 relaxation time in acutely infarcted relative to normal myocardium 16 adult patients and normal volunteers were studied by electrocardiographically gated proton MRI. The seven volunteers were entirely asymptomatic and had no history of cardiovascular abn...