Automated bolus chase peripheral MR angiography: Initial practical experiences and future directions of this work-in-progress

Bolus chase 3-dimensional MR angiography (3D MRA) is a recent development t hat extends the effective field of view for arterial imaging from the typic al single 40-50 cm to over 100 cm, This technique is well suited for imagin g long vascular territories such as the lower extremity, Bolus chase periph eral 3D MRA is achieved with overlapping 3D gradient-echo scans during the arterial transit of a single intravenous injection of gadolinium-chelate co ntrast media. This technique can depict the arteries from the infrarenal ao rta to the ankles in less than 2 minutes. The initial experiences with bolu s chase peripheral MRA using an automated algorithm that controls both tabl e translation and 3D data acquisition are described. Suggestions for future refinements to the technique are also discussed. Published 1999 Wiley-Liss , Inc.