Analysis of Coronary Vein Motion: Implications for MR Coronary Vein Venography

Pierre John Watson¹, Jonathan D. Suever², John N. Oshinski¹

The periods of low motion of the coronary veins during the cardiac cycle were quantified using 3D magnetic resonance coronary venograms (cMRV) in 16 patients with ischemic heart disease. The temporal location and duration of these periods were determined using the frame-to-frame displacement method on the coronary sinus. The patients were classified as either systolic or diastolic dominant based on the duration of the periods. The majority of patients were systolic dominant although about a third of the patients either had a very short diastolic period or lacked it completely.