Myocardial Vasculature: A Major Contributor to Cardiac MR Diffusion

MinSig Hwang¹, Melvin Clark¹, John R. Forder¹

Since the coronary circulation is a pivotal component of the myocardium, vascular spaces may need to be weighted as much as interstitial and intracellular spaces in order to understand the physiological compartments responsible for the myocardial DTI signals. In this experimental study using 11T magnet, we demonstrated vascular compartment is a significant contributor to the myocardial MR diffusion characteristics observed in isolated rabbit heart by replacing the vascular space with perfluorocarbon-emulsion (PFC) and by changing the vascular flow rate of a modified St. Thomas Hospital cardioplegic solution (STH).