Pulmonary artery pulsatility and effect on vessel diameter assessment in magnetic resonance imaging

Black blood, white blood and MRA sequences are all reproducible CMR methods for the assessment of arterial diameters in children and adolescents. Measurements from systolic phase SSFP images are comparable to those from contrast-enhanced MRA. Therefore, the administration of contrast medium is not necessary in every case. Cine SSFP images offer the additional advantage over the other methods in such that both the largest and the smallest diameter of the vessel during the cardiac cycle can be assessed using this technique. This is even more relevant in highly pulsatile circulations, such as patients with repaired TOF and significant pulmonary insufficiency.