Observations from multidetector CT imaging of different types of renal artery stents.

Purpose: To present an optimized protocol for acquisition and reconstruction of multidetector computed tomographic angiographic (CTA) images of the stents most commonly used in renal arteries.

Technique: CTA was performed on a 16-detector row CT scanner using 0.75-mm collimation. Multiplanar reformatted images perpendicular to the stents and 2-dimensional curved reformatted images were displayed. Two different view windows ("vascular" and "stent") were used, each adapted to the stent density, the vascular wall density, and the aortic enhancement. Five different types of stainless steel balloon-expandable stents were examined; all caused discernable artifacts. These artifacts became more prominent as the stent density increased, becoming most significant when 2 stents were positioned one inside the other. The "stent" window allowed better appreciation of the stent shape and its position compared to the aortic wall and ostial calcifications. The "vascular" window afforded a better view of the vascular lumen, in addition to visualizing the stent in several planes.

Conclusions: Multidetector CTA using dedicated acquisition and reconstruction protocols is capable of visualizing the vascular lumen of different types of renal stents while avoiding metallic artifacts.