AORTIC DISTENSIBILITY AND STIFFNESS INDEX MEASURED BY MAGNETIC-RESONANCE-IMAGING IN PATIENTS WITH MARFANS-SYNDROME

Objectives-To use magnetic resonance imaging to measure the elastic pr operties of the aorta of adults with Marfan's syndrome and to compare these results with those obtained by echocardiography. Patients and me thods-12 patients with Marfan's syndrome and 12 matched for age. Trans verse areas of the ascending and descending aorta were measured using electrocardiographic gated magnetic resonance imaging. Echocardiograph y was used to measure the diameter of the ascending aorta and aortic a rch in patients with Marfan's syndrome. Blood pressure was measured du ring both scans. Results--In diastole, transverse luminal areas of the ascending and descending aorta were significantly greater in patients with Marfan's syndrome when measured by magnetic resonance imaging. a nd corrected for body surface area; P < 0.02 and P < 0.05 respectively . Patients with Marfan's syndrome had a higher stiffness index (112.77 v 5.78, P < 0.05) and a lower distensibility (0.0066 v 0.0105, P < 0. 05) than controls. Results produced by MRI and echocardiography were n ot significantly different. Conclusions-Magnetic resonance imaging giv es good quality reproducible images of the ascending and descending ao rta. In patients with Marfan's syndrome, aortic distensibility and sti ffness index measured by magnetic resonance imaging were abnormal (but did not always relate directly to the size of the aorta.