MR angiography of peripheral vessels with automatic trocking-toble technique at 1.0 T in comparison to intraarterial DSA.

Purpose: Contrast-enhanced (CE) 3D-MR angiography of peripheral arteries wa s performed in 8 patients with peripheral arterial occlusive disease by app lying a new tracking technique on a 1.0 T system (Magnetom Harmony, Siemens ). The studies were compared with intra-arterial digital angiography as gol d standard. Materials and Methods: imaging of the distal aorta, pelvis, upp er and lower limb arteries was accomplished with a Flash-3D-sequence (TRITE = 6.2/3.2 ms) within 26 s acquisition time of each region after a single b olus of 30 ml contrast agent. Individual circulation time was determined by a test bolus before each examination. Results: 112 vessel segments were ev aluated. MR angiography achieved a sensitivity of 89% and a specificity of 100% for detecting high grade stenoses and vessel occlusions. Conclusions: Tracking CE 3D-MR angiography with a 1.0 T MR imager proved to be a promisi ng method in evaluating hemodynamically significant stenoses and occlusions of peripheral arteries. However, its definite role in the diagnostic work- up of peripheral arterial occlusive disease has to be evaluated in larger p rospective studies.