Feasibility of Vascular Parameter Estimation for Assessing Hypertensive Pregnancy Disorders.

Hypertensive pregnancy disorders (HPDs), such as pre-eclampsia, are leading sources of both maternal and fetal morbidity in pregnancy. Noninvasive imaging, such as ultrasound (US) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), is an important tool for predicting and monitoring these high risk pregnancies. While imaging can measure hemodynamic parameters, such as uterine artery pulsatility and resistivity indices (PI and RI), the interpretation of such metrics for disease assessment relies on ad hoc standards, which provide limited insight to the physical mechanisms underlying the emergence of hypertensive pregnancy disorders.

Alterations in Intracardiac Flow Patterns Affect Mitral Leaflets Dynamics in a Model of Ischemic Mitral Regurgitation.

Purpose: This study was to evaluate the effects of ischemic mitral regurgitation (IMR) on vortex formation and leaflet dynamics using an established porcine infarct model of IMR.

Methods: Using direct coronary ligation, five animals were subjected to a posterolateral myocardial infarction (MI) followed by an MRI at 12-weeks post MI. MR imaging consisted of 4D time-resolved left ventricular (LV) flow, full coverage 2D LV cine, and high resolution 2D cine of mitral valve dynamics.

Magnetic susceptibility and R2* of myocardial reperfusion injury at 3T and 7T.

Purpose: Magnetic susceptibility (Δχ) alterations have shown association with myocardial infarction (MI) iron deposition, yet there remains limited understanding of the relationship between relaxation rates and susceptibility or the effect of magnetic field strength. Hence, Δχ and in MI were compared at 3T and 7T.

Methods: Subacute MI was induced by coronary artery ligation in male Yorkshire swine.

Classification of Myocardial F-FDG PET Uptake Patterns Using Deep Learning.

Purpose: To perform automated myocardial segmentation and uptake classification from whole-body fluorine 18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET.

Materials And Methods: In this retrospective study, consecutive patients who underwent FDG PET imaging for oncologic indications were included (July-August 2018). The left ventricle (LV) on whole-body FDG PET images was manually segmented and classified as showing no myocardial uptake, diffuse uptake, or partial uptake.

Cross-modality and in-vivo validation of 4D flow MRI evaluation of uterine artery blood flow in human pregnancy.

Objectives: Clinical assessment of uterine artery (UtA) hemodynamics is currently limited to Doppler ultrasound (US) velocimetry. We have demonstrated previously the feasibility of applying four-dimensional (4D) flow magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to evaluate UtA hemodynamics during pregnancy, allowing flow quantification of the entire course of the vessel. In this study, we sought to further validate the physiological relevance of 4D flow MRI measurement of UtA blood flow by exploring its association with pregnancy outcome relative to US-based metrics.