Pulmonary veins: Magnetic resonance angiography anatomy

Objective to optimize magnetic resonance angiography technique for the selective study of the anatomy of pulmonary veins. Materials and methods: twenty consecutive patients (13 males and seven females; mean age 30.5 years) prospectively studied were enrolled. Magnetic resonance angiography was performed using a 1 T superconductive magnet and three dimensional time of flight technique (3D TOF). Imaging with steady-state free precession sequence during intravenous infusion of contrast medium (Gd DTPA 0.2 mmol kg^-1) administration was employed using the following parameters: FA 20°, TR 58 ms. TE 6 ms. MA 192 x 256, NEX 1, slice thickness 4 mm and slice orientation on the Z and Y planes. Results: in the right lung magnetic resonance angiography well visualized 124 venous vessels on the coronal plane versus 106 venous vessels on the sagittal plane, whereas in the left lung magnetic resonance angiography visualized 96 vessels on the coronal plane versus 44 visualized on the sagittal plane. Our data suggest that 3D time of flight with contrast medium is a promising evaluation technique for pulmonary veins, and that combined evaluation of acquisitions on coronal and sagittal planes allows the visualization of a higher number of venous vessels. Conclusion: 3D time of flight with contrast medium and without breath-hold permits to visualize a venous vascular map of the lungs.