David Joseph Niles1, Andrew L. Wentland1,2,
Nathan S. Artz1, Thomas M. Grist1,2, Sean B. Fain1,2,
Aji Djamali3, Elizabeth A. Sadowski2
1Medical Physics, University of Wisconsin
School of Medicine & Public Health, Madison, WI, United States; 2Radiology,
University of Wisconsin School of Medicine & Public Health, Madison, WI,
United States; 3Nephrology, University of Wisconsin School of
Medicine & Public Health, Madison, WI, United States
Functional
MR imaging techniques provide a non-invasive method for studying renal
physiology. This study measured blood flow in the main renal artery using
phase contrast MR, cortical and medullary perfusion using ASL and oxygenation
using BOLD MR imaging sequences, in normotensive and hypotensive swine. Our
results demonstrate medullary oxygenation is maintained despite a decrease in
renal artery blood flow and regional tissue perfusion in the hypotensive
states. This has been previously demonstrated by others with invasive probes
in animals. Our functional renal MR techniques may be applied to future
studies in humans to study blood flow and oxygenation simultaneously.