Real-time, Interactive MRI for Cardiovascular Interventions 1

Abstract

Over the past decade, there has been a small contingent of laboratories developing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-guided intravascular techniques and applications. While these efforts have followed in the footsteps of MRI-guided surgical technologies (1,2), intravascular techniques do not carry the requirement for an open access scanner, and hence higher imaging performance during procedures can be achieved. The concept of precise real-time tracking of an active catheter in a standard MRI scanner was fully realized more than 15 years ago by Dumoulin and colleagues (3). Interventional MRI has subsequently developed into the obvious method for delivery of numerous therapies. This review addresses the recent developments and state-of-the-art of a number of aspects of interventional cardiovascular MRI.