MR portal venography: preliminary results of fast acquisition without contrast material or breath holding.
OBJECTIVE
The authors performed this study to evaluate the feasibility of using the steady-state free precession (SSFP) sequence to perform magnetic resonance (MR) venography of the portal venous system without the use of contrast material or breath holding.


METHODS
Eleven patients underwent MR venography with the SSFP technique. Coronal three-dimensional images were obtained with respiratory triggering. Contrast material and respiratory suspension were not used. All patients had recently undergone at least one other imaging study (conventional angiography, transhepatic portal venography, ultrasound, or contrast-enhanced computed tomography), and these findings were correlated with those from MR venography. The structures evaluated were the main portal vein, right portal vein, left portal vein, superior mesenteric vein, and splenic vein.


RESULTS
MR venography with SSFP accurately depicted the status of these veins in all cases except one. In this patient, MR venography depicted portal vein thrombus but could not indicate that it was tumor thrombus.


CONCLUSIONS
MR venography with SSFP accurately depicted the portal venous system in 10 of 11 patients without the use of respiratory suspension or contrast material.
Wilson
Mark W
MW
Department of Radiology, University of California, San Francisco, 94143-0628, USA.
LaBerge
Jeanne M
JM
Kerlan
Robert K
RK
Martin
Alastair J
AJ
Weber
Oliver M
OM
Roberts
Timothy
T
Vitalich
Cathy
C
Higgins
Charles B
CB
Gordon
Roy L
RL
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001185:Artificial Intelligence; D003287:Contrast Media; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010690:Phlebography / Q000379:methods*; D011168:Portal System / Q000473:pathology; D011172:Portography; D012119:Respiration; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D020246:Venous Thrombosis / Q000175:diagnosis
D003287:Contrast Media