Tomoelastography was recently introduced for high-resolution stiffness mapping in abdominal organs. The method is based on multifrequency MR elastography and noise-robust reconstruction of shear wave speed maps. This study demonstrates the feasibility of tomoelastography for measurement of the mechanical properties of the abdominal aorta (AA) and inferior vena cava (IVC) in healthy volunteers. AA was measured stiffer than IVC with increasing disparity after drinking one liter of water. Our results demonstrate the sensitivity of MRE-measured effective stiffness values in AA and IVC to physiological alteration of the hydration state and offer a new perspective for MRE of abdominal vessels.
This abstract and the presentation materials are available to members only; a login is required.