Abstract #3905

Evaluation of the Femoral Arteries: Before or After Tumor Treatments Using Non-Contrast MRA Using Subtraction Method Based on Velocity Encoding Technique

Takayuki Masui¹, Motoyuki Katayama¹, Mitsuharu Miyoshi², Kimihiko Sato¹, Hiroki Ikuma¹, Hidekazu Seo¹, Masayoshi Sugimura¹, Megumi Ishii¹, Naoyuki Takei², Tetsuji Tsukamoto²

¹Radiology, Seirei Hamamatsu General Hospital, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, Japan; ²Japan Applied Science Laboratory, GE Yokogawa Medical Systems Ltd, Hino, Tokyo, Japan

Flow Saturation Preparation (Flow-Sat-Prep) technique, which saturates flow signals in preparation pulse with velocity encoding and crusher gradients, is a non-contrast (NC) MRA technique for selective visualization of the artery and vein. In 20 patients, NC MRA demonstrated superficial femoral arteries and/or graft vessels without overlaps of the venous or background signals. NC MRA provided identical information to that of contrast enhanced (C) MRA regarding the patency of the femoral arteries and grafts. Without side effects related contrast agents, NC MRA might replace C MRA for the evaluation of the femoral arteries.