MAGNETIC-RESONANCE ARTERIOGRAPHY, DUPLEX SONOGRAPHY AND CONVENTIONAL ARTERIOGRAPHY FOR EVALUATING PERIPHERAL ARTERIAL OCCLUSIVE DISEASE

A prospective controlled study of 41 peripheral arterial occlusions wa s carried out, comparing duplex sonography, magnetic resonance arterio graphy and contrast arteriography. 87.8 % of duplex sonography finding s and 80.5 % of magnetic resonance arteriographies agreed with the app earances of contrast arteriography (gold standard). Duplex sonography tended to overestimate the length of an occluded segment by an average of 2 cm (0.5-5 cm), whereas magnetic resonance arteriography showed l ess deviation from contrast arteriography (+/-2 cm). The advantage of duplex sonography lies in its ability to provide morphological and fun ctional information concerning the obliterated segment. Its disadvanta ge is that it can only demonstrate one segment and that the examinatio n must be carried out in individual segments. Magnetic resonance arter iography provides vascular demonstration in several planes similar to angiography but signal-voids due to limited resolution and flow change s may limit diagnosis of occlusions. Additional phase contrast techniq ues may provide quantitative information on flow velocities and flow r ates. Both duplex sonography and magnetic resonance arteriography are suitable methods for the non-invasive investigation of peripheral arte rial occlusive disease.