High-Frequency 4-Dimensional Ultrasound (4DUS): A Reliable Method for Assessing Murine Cardiac Function.

In vivo imaging has provided a unique framework for studying pathological progression in various mouse models of cardiac disease. Although conventional short-axis motion-mode (SAX MM) ultrasound and cine magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are two of the most prevalent strategies used for quantifying cardiac function, there are few notable limitations including imprecision, inaccuracy, and geometric assumptions with ultrasound, or large and costly systems with substantial infrastructure requirements with MRI. Here we present an automated 4-dimensional ultrasound (4DUS) technique that provides comparable information to cine MRI through spatiotemporally synced imaging of cardiac motion.