Role Of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Research Articles

The Role of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance in patients with Amyloidosis and Aortic Stenosis

Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) plays an important role in the diagnosis and prognosis of various heart diseases. The incidence of cardiac amyloidosis and aortic stenosis has been increasing in recent years, especially with the aging population, and their possible coexistence has created frequent diagnostic challenges in clinical practice. CMR assumes an important value in this context due to its unique capacity for multiparametric assessment evaluations that include anatomical, functional, and histopathological aspects. The present review aimed to increase our knowledge of the diagnosis and prognosis of amyloidosis in the presence of aortic stenosis and highlighted the importance of CMR in this scenario.

Imaging in Cardiac Sarcoidosis: Complementary Role of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance and Cardiac Positron Emission Tomography

Imaging in Cardiac Sarcoidosis: Complementary Role of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance and Cardiac Positron Emission Tomography

Role of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) in planning ventricular septal myomectomy in patients with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM).

Septal myectomy is currently the gold standard treatment for symptomatic patients with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM). The procedure needs to be tailored and performed in a personalized fashion, taking into consideration the anatomic and physiologic heterogeneity of this disease. The extent and location of surgical myectomy will depend on the location of the hypertrophy, with the goal of widening the outflow tract and improve the function of the mitral valve. CMR helps to identify hypertrophy not well visualized by TTE, providing more accurate wall thickness measurements and differentiating HOCM from other causes of LV hypertrophy. CMR also helps identify an abnormal attachment of papillary muscle to the MV or to the septal myocardium and mitral valve pathology. A collaborative approach with cardiac surgeons, radiologists and cardiologists will optimize preoperative planning to improve the success for surgical myectomy.

Native T1 Mapping-Based Radiomics for Noninvasive Prediction of the Therapeutic Effect of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension.

(1) Background: Novel markers for predicting the short-term therapeutic effect of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) to assist in the prompt initiation of tailored treatment strategies are greatly needed and highly desirable. The aim of the study was to investigate the role of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) native T1 mapping radiomics in predicting the short-term therapeutic effect in PAH patients; (2) Methods: Fifty-five PAH patients who received targeted therapy were retrospectively included. Patients were subdivided into an effective group and an ineffective group by assessing the therapeutic effect after ≥3 months of treatment. All patients underwent CMR examinations prior to the beginning of the therapy. Radiomics features from native T1 mapping images were extracted. A radiomics model was constructed using the support vector machine (SVM) algorithm for predicting the therapeutic effect; (3) Results: The SVM radiomics model revealed favorable performance for predicting the therapeutic effect with areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.955 in the training cohort and 0.893 in the test cohort, respectively. With the optimal cutoff value, the radiomics model showed accuracies of 0.909 and 0.818 in the training and test cohorts, respectively; (4) Conclusions: The CMR native T1 mapping-based radiomics model holds promise for predicting the therapeutic effect in PAH patients.

Diagnostic and prognostic role of cardiac magnetic resonance in patients with MINOCA

Abstract Background Myocardial infarction with non-obstructed coronary arteries (MINOCA) is common in current clinical practice and cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) plays an important role in the present management of this group of patients. However, there are still a lot of controversies concerning the etiology behind the syndrome of MINOCA. Furthermore, the prognostic value of CMR in patients with MINOCA is still undetermined. Purpose We aimed to determine the diagnostic and prognostic value of CMR in the management of patients with MINOCA. Methods A systematic review was performed to identify studies reporting the results of CMR findings in MINOCA patients (non-obstructive CAD or normal coronary arteries). Random effects models were used to determine the prevalence of different disease entities – myocarditis, myocardial infarction, Takotsubo cardiomyopathy or normal CMR findings. Pooled odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated to evaluate the prognostic value of CMR diagnosis in the subgroup of studies that reported clinical outcomes. Major adverse clinical events (MACE) were defined based on the specific study definitions and included cardiovascular death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, and cardiovascular hospitalization. Results 31 studies comprising 4119 patients were included. Mean age was 54.1±3.3, 59% were males. The pooled prevalence of myocarditis was 32% (95% CI 0.25 to 0.39), myocardial infarction (MI) - 21% (95% CI 0.17 to 0.24), Takotsubo cardiomyopathy −12% (95% CI 0.09 to 0.16). Normal findings were found in 23% (95% CI 0.14 to 0.35), figure 1. In a subgroup analysis of seven studies (900 patients) that reported clinical outcomes the prognostic value of the CMR was assessed. CMR diagnosis of myocarditis was not significantly associated with increased risk of MACE (pooled OR, 1.50; 95% CI, 0.46 to 4.87; p=0.459). However, both diagnosis of MI and Takotsubo were significantly associated with increased risk of combined clinical outcomes (pooled OR, 1.75; 95% CI, 1.12 to 3.59; p<0.05 and pooled OR, 2.19; 95% CI, 1.34 to 5.27; p<0.001). Conclusion In patients with MINOCA CMR brings important diagnostic and prognostic role. The pooled prevalence of myocarditis was 32%, of MI – 21% and of Takotsubo – 12%. The CMR diagnosis of MI and Takotsubo was associated with increased risk of MACE. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding sources: None.

Prognostic role of cardiac magnetic resonance in left ventricular non compaction

Abstract Introduction Left ventricular non compaction (LVNC) is a heterogeneous entity with uncertain prognosis. Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) is widely used in the diagnosis of LVNC. However, its role in risk stratification has not been well established. Purpose Therefore, the aim of our study was to identify prognostic CMR variables in LVNC. Methods We conducted a retrospective longitudinal multicentre cohort study of consecutive patients fulfilling CMR LVNC criteria. The endpoints were heart failure (HF), ventricular arrhythmias (VA), systemic embolisms (SE) and all-cause mortality. Biventricular volumes, ejection fraction (LVEF and RVEF) as well as late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) were analysed. Results A total of 310 patients were included: age was 44.4±19 and 43% female. LVEF was 47% ± 15%, RVEF was 48±12 and 28 patients (9%) presented LGE. After a median follow-up of 3.8 2.5 years, 40 patients (13%) presented HF, 31 (10%) had VA, SE occurred in 6 (2%) and 3 patients (1%) died. Baseline characteristics of patients with and without HF and VA are described in Table 1. In univariate analysis, LVEF, LV volumes, LGE, and RVEF were associated with both HF and VA risk. In multivariate analysis, LVEF was the only variable independently associated with HF (HR 0.932, CI 95% 0.88–0.97, p 0.003). Patients with an LVEF >35% were at very low risk of HF (Figure 1A). With regards to VA, LGE was the only independent predictor (HR 2.64, IC 95% 1.059–6.61, p 0.003) (Figure 1B). In LGE negative patients, the arrhythmic risk was higher among those with an LVEF <35% (HR 2.81, 95% CI 1.02–8.12, p 0.047). Conclusions In a large multicentre retrospective LVNC study, left ventricular ejection fraction and late gadolinium enhancement were the main predictors of cardiovascular events. Patients with an LVEF <35% and with LGE were at markedly increased risk. Therefore, we suggest that these variables should be combined to enhance risk stratification in LVNC. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding sources: None.

Cardiac Magnetic Resonance in the Evaluation of Patients With Frequent Premature Ventricular Complexes.

The role of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) in the evaluation and management of patients with frequent premature ventricular complexes (PVCs) of unknown etiology remains unclear. This study evaluated the prevalence and prognostic significance of myocardial abnormalities detected with CMR among patients with frequent PVCs and no known structural heart disease. This prospective cohort study included consecutive patients with frequent PVCs and a negative initial diagnostic work-up who underwent CMR with late gadolinium enhancement imaging. The clinical outcome was a composite of mortality, ventricular fibrillation, sustained ventricular tachycardia, or reduction in left ventricular ejection fraction of≥10%. A total of 255 patients were included, of whom 35 (13.7%) had evidence of myocardial abnormality on CMR. Age≥60 years (odds ratio [OR]: 6.96; 95%CI: 1.30-37.18), multifocal PVCs (OR: 10.90; 95%CI: 3.21-36.97), and non-outflow tract left ventricular PVC origin (OR: 3.00; 95%CI: 1.00-8.95) were independently associated with the presence of a myocardial abnormality on CMR. After a median follow-up of 36months, the composite outcome occurred in 15 (5.9%) patients. The presence of a myocardial abnormality on CMR was independently associated with the composite outcome (HR: 4.35; 95%CI: 1.34-14.15; P=0.014). One in 7 patients with frequent PVCs with no known structural heart disease had myocardial abnormality detected on CMR, and these abnormalities were associated with adverse clinical outcomes. These findings highlight the important role of CMR in the evaluation of patients with frequent PVCs.

The role of cardiac magnetic resonance in identifying appropriate candidates for cardiac resynchronization therapy - a systematic review of the literature.

Despite the strict indications for cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) implantation, a significant proportion of patients will fail to adequately respond to the treatment. This systematic review aims to present the existing evidence about the role of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) in identifying patients who are likely to respond better to the CRT. A systematic search in the MedLine database and Cochrane Library from their inception to August 2021 was performed, without any limitations, by two independent investigators. We considered eligible observational studies or randomized clinical trials (RCTs) that enrolled patients > 18years old with heart failure (HF) of ischaemic or non-ischaemic aetiology and provided data about the association of baseline CMR variables with clinical or echocardiographic response to CRT for at least 3months. This systematic review was performed in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA Statement). Following our search strategy, 47 studies were finally included in our review. CMR appears to have an additive role in identifying the subgroup of patients who will respond better to CRT. Specifically, the presence and the extent of myocardial scar were associated with increased non-response rates, while those with no scar respond better. Furthermore, existing data show that scar location can be associated with CRT response rates. CMR-derived markers of mechanical desynchrony can also be used as predictors of CRT response. CMR data can be used to optimize the position of the left ventricular lead during the CRT implantation procedure. Specifically, positioning the left ventricular lead in a branch of the coronary sinus that feeds an area with transmural scar was associated with poorer response to CRT. CMR can be used as a non-invasive optimization tool to identify patients who are more likely to achieve better clinical and echocardiographic response following CRT implantation.

Right heart dilatation: role of cardiac magnetic resonance and computed tomography in the differential diagnosis.

Right heart dilatation: role of cardiac magnetic resonance and computed tomography in the differential diagnosis.

Prognostic factors in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in children: An MRI based study

BackgroundClinical and prognostic role of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) in adult population with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) have been largely assessed.We sought to investigate the role of CMR for predicting cardiovascular events in children with HCM. MethodsCMR was performed in 116 patients with HCM (37 sarcomeric mutations, 31 other mutations, mean age 10.4 ± 4.3 yrs). CMR protocol included cine imaging for evaluation of morphology and function and late gadolinium enhancement (LGE). Hard cardiac events (sustained VT, resuscitated cardiac arrest, sudden cardiac death, end-stage heart failure, heart transplant and appropriate ICD intervention) were recorded through a median follow-up of 4 (1–7) years. ResultsDuring follow-up 21 heart cardiac events occurred. At maximal-rank statistic the optimal cut-point for LGE extent for predicting events was ≥2%. Syncope, non-sustained ventricular tachycardia (NSVT) and LGE extent ≥2% were independent predictors of events. At Harrel's C statistic combination of LGE extent ≥2% and syncope was the strongest model for predicting events. HR of patients with LGE extent ≥2% and no history of syncope was 3.6 (1.1–12.2) that increased to 37.6 (5.4–161) in those with LGE extent ≥2% and syncope. The median time dependent AUC of LGE extent (0.88, 95% CI 0.86–0.89) was significantly higher than that of syncope (0.63, 95% CI 0.61–0.66, p < 0.0001) and NSVT (0.52, 95% CI 0.50–0.53, p < 0.0001). ConclusionsIn children with HCM, LGE and syncope were independent predictors of hard cardiac events at follow-up.

The Role of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance in Aortic Stenosis and Regurgitation.

Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging is a well-set diagnostic technique for assessment of valvular heart diseases and is gaining ground in current clinical practice. It provides high-quality images without the administration of ionizing radiation and occasionally without the need of contrast agents. It offers the unique possibility of a comprehensive stand-alone assessment of the heart including biventricular function, left ventricle remodeling, myocardial fibrosis, and associated valvulopathies. CMR is the recognized reference for the quantification of ventricular volumes, mass, and function. A particular strength is the ability to quantify flow, especially with new techniques which allow accurate measurement of stenosis and regurgitation. Furthermore, tissue mapping enables the visualization and quantification of structural changes in the myocardium. In this way, CMR has the potential to yield important prognostic information predicting those patients who will progress to surgery and impact outcomes. In this review, the fundamentals of CMR in assessment of aortic valve diseases (AVD) are described, together with its strengths and weaknesses. This state-of-the-art review provides an updated overview of CMR potentials in all AVD issues, including valve anatomy, flow quantification, ventricular volumes and function, and tissue characterization.

The role of CMR in the evaluation of microvascular coronary dysfunction and in the diagnosis of other causes of MINOCA in patients with NSTEMI

Myocardial infarction without coronary artery obstruction (MINOCA) is 3 times more common in patients with NSTEMI compared to STEMI. The potential etiology of MINOCA can be divided in coronary and non-coronary causes. At the same time, an important role in its etiopathogenesis is played by microvascular coronary dysfunction (DCM). The aim of the study is to assess the feasibility of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) as a non-invasive method of evaluating DCM in patients with NSTEMI and in addition, to verify the substrate of MINOCA according to CMR. A diagnostic examination was carried out in 16 patients, of which coronary etiology was confirmed only in 1/3, the rest of the patients had a non-coronary etiology of the disease (myocarditis, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and dilated cardiomyopathy). Microvascular coronary dysfunction (CDM) was determined in 30% of patients with non-coronary impairment (group I) and in 50% of those with coronary heart disease (group II) (χ² = 0.64, p&gt; 0.05). Significant differences between groups were observed in the localization of fibrosis, so in group II, according to CMR, all patients had subendocardial fibrosis - 100%, while in group I, intramural fibrosis prevailed in 50% (n = 5), subepicardial fibrosis - 20% (n = 2) and in 20% (n = 2) both types of contrast enhancement were noted, χ² = 12.44 p &lt; 0.05. In conclusion, CMR is an important diagnostic tool both in assessing the causes of MINOCA and in evaluating DCM in this category of patients. However, further studies are needed to improve the diagnostic accuracy of this method in the study of coronary microcirculation.

Role of cardiac magnetic resonance in heart failure of initially unknown etiology: A 10-year observational study.

The heart failure (HF) population is estimated to be 64.3 million people worldwide and continues to grow. Identifying the underlying cause of HF is crucial for patient management and prognosis. We sought to evaluate the role of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging to identify the etiology of HF and to evaluate the impact of CMR on diagnosis and patient management. We retrospectively reviewed the medical charts of 8630 consecutive patients referred for CMR in a large tertiary center between 2008 and 2017 (10 years). In this study, we only included patients referred for CMR due to HF of unknown etiology whose diagnostic workup had not revealed suspicion of any specific cardiac disease leading to HF. We also analyzed changes in patient management that were guided by the CMR findings, which were defined as changes in treatment and/or the necessity of further tests. The study sample included 243 patients: 173 (71.2%) patients were male, and the mean (SD) age was 44.0 (15.2) years. All patients underwent contrast-enhanced CMR. Late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) was detected in 74.9% of cases. In 94 patients (38.7%), CMR led to a new diagnosis. In 41 patients (16.9%), patient management was changed by CMR. The latter group comprised patients with coronary artery disease, amyloidosis, valvular disease, and cardiomyopathies other than dilated, namely hypertrophic, restrictive, and left ventricular noncompaction. Our study strongly suggests that CMR imaging is a valuable tool for determining the etiology of HF and affects patient management.

Role of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance in the Diagnosis and Prognosis of Ventricular Noncompaction Cardiomyopathy

Role of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance in the Diagnosis and Prognosis of Ventricular Noncompaction Cardiomyopathy

Role of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance in the Diagnosis of Infiltrative, Hypertrophic, and Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathies.

Cardiac magnetic resonance has become a reliable imaging modality providing structural and functional data, and fundamental information about tissue composition. Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging with late gadolinium enhancement, T1-mapping, T2-mapping, T2*-imaging, and extracellular volume, has proved to be a valuable tool in investigating the etiology of heart failure. Such analysis is helpful for the diagnostic evaluation of both ischemic and non-ischemic cardiomyopathies. As primary heart muscle diseases, the ability to characterize the myocardial substrate is essential. Determining the heart failure etiology is fundamental and has implications regarding the prognosis prediction and best treatment. Investigation in cardiac magnetic resonance in heart failure patients has grown in the past decade, and the true value of this imaging modality to detect early disease likely remains underestimated. This review describes the importance of cardiac magnetic resonance for the diagnosis and prognosis of non-ischemic cardiomyopathies, particularly hypertrophic, infiltrative, and arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathies.

The Role of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance in Myocardial Infarction and Non-obstructive Coronary Arteries.

Myocardial Infarction with Non-Obstructive Coronary Arteries (MINOCA) accounts for 5–15% of all presentations of acute myocardial infarction. The absence of obstructive coronary disease may present a diagnostic dilemma and identifying the underlying etiology ensures appropriate management improving clinical outcomes. Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging is a valuable, non-invasive diagnostic tool that can aide clinicians to build a differential diagnosis in patients with MINOCA, as well as identifying non-ischemic etiologies of myocardial injury (acute myocarditis, Takotsubo Syndrome, and other conditions). The role of CMR in suspected MINOCA is increasingly recognized as emphasized in both European and American clinical guidelines. In this paper we review the indications for CMR, the clinical value in the differential diagnosis of patients with suspected MINOCA, as well as its current limitations and future perspectives.

Cardiac Magnetic Resonance for Ventricular Tachycardia Ablation and Risk Stratification.

Ventricular tachycardia is the most frequent cause of sudden cardiovascular death in patients with structural heart disease. Radiofrequency ablation is the treatment cornerstone in this population. Main mechanism for structural heart disease-related ventricular tachycardia is re-entry due to presence of slow conduction area within the scar tissue. Electroanatomical mapping with high density catheters can elucidate the presence of both scar (voltage maps) and slow conduction (activation maps). Despite the technological improvements recurrence rate after ventricular tachycardia ablation is high. Cardiac magnetic resonance has demonstrated to be useful to define the location of the scar tissue in endocardium, midmyocardium and/or epicardial region. Furthermore, recent studies have shown that cardiac magnetic resonance can analyse in detail the ventricular tachycardia substrate in terms of core scar and border zone tissue. This detailed tissue analysis has been proved to have good correlation with slow conduction areas and ventricular tachycardia isthmuses in electroanatomical maps. This review will provide a summary of the current role of cardiac magnetic resonance in different scenarios related with ventricular tachycardia in patients with structural heart disease, its limitations and the future perspectives.

The 2020 "Padua Criteria" for Diagnosis and Phenotype Characterization of Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy in Clinical Practice.

Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy (ACM) is a heredo-familial cardiac disease characterized by fibro-fatty myocardial replacement and increased risk of sudden cardiac death. The diagnosis of ACM can be challenging due to the lack of a single gold-standard test: for this reason, it is required to satisfy a combination of multiple criteria from different categories including ventricular morpho-functional abnormalities, repolarization and depolarization ECG changes, ventricular arrhythmias, tissue characterization findings and positive family history/molecular genetics. The first diagnostic criteria were published by an International Task Force (ITF) of experts in 1994 and revised in 2010 with the aim to increase sensitivity for early diagnosis. Limitations of the 2010 ITF criteria include the absence of specific criteria for left ventricle (LV) involvement and the limited role of cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) as the use of the late gadolinium enhancement technique for tissue characterization was not considered. In 2020, new diagnostic criteria (“the Padua criteria”) were proposed. The traditional organization in six categories of major/minor criteria was maintained. The criteria for identifying the right ventricular involvement were modified and a specific set of criteria for identifying LV involvement was created. Depending on the combination of criteria for right and LV involvement, a diagnosis of classic (right dominant) ACM, biventricular ACM or left-dominant ACM is then made. The article reviews the rationale of the Padua criteria, summarizes the main modifications compared to the previous 2010 ITF criteria and provides three examples of the application of the Padua criteria in clinical practice.

Diverse Radiologic Presentations of Common Pathology: Role of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance in the Workup of Intracardiac Thrombi and Mimics- A Pictorial Review

Thrombus represents the most common cardiac mass compared to primary or secondary cardiac tumors. It has variable size, shape, location, and imaging features. Differentiating the cardiac mass as a tumor, thrombus, or vegetation is clinically important due to their different therapeutic implications and prognostic outcomes. Thrombi carry an inherent risk of systemic and pulmonary embolism and warrant appropriate anticoagulation. For over two decades, echocardiography (transthoracic as well as transesophageal) has been the gold standard investigation to detect intracardiac thrombi. However, recent advances in cardiac magnetic resonance imaging allow higher sensitivity and specificity in the detection of thrombi and the assessment of the age of the thrombi by characterization of their contents. The objective of this review is to demonstrate different imaging presentations of cardiac thrombi and how imaging can help differentiate it from other mimics.

Role of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance in the Diagnosis of Cardiac Amyloidosis

Role of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance in the Diagnosis of Cardiac Amyloidosis