Functional MRI of the kidney.
Functional MR imaging of the kidney has a great potential of development because the functional parameters, which can be approached noninvasively, are multiple: glomerular filtration, tubular concentration and transit, blood volume and perfusion, diffusion, and oxygenation. Until now, its limitations in clinical applications are due to the difficulties in obtaining reproducible and reliable information in this mobile organ and, sometimes, in understanding the physiologic substrate of the signal changes observed. These approaches require either endogeneous contrast agents, such as water protons (for perfusion and diffusion) or deoxyhemogobin (for oxgenation), or exogeneous contrast agents such as gadolinium chelates (for filtration and perfusion) or iron oxide particles (for perfusion). Clinical validation of these methods and evaluation of their clinical impact are now worthwhile before diffusing them in clinical practice.
Grenier
N
N
CNRS (UMR-5536), Résonance Magnétique des Systèmes Biologiques, Université Victor Segalen-Bordeaux 2, 146 Rue Léo Saignat, 33076 Bordeaux Cedex, France.
Basseau
F
F
Ries
M
M
Tyndal
B
B
Jones
R
R
Moonen
C
C
D003287:Contrast Media; D005682:Gadolinium; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA; D005919:Glomerular Filtration Rate; D006571:Heterocyclic Compounds; D006801:Humans; D007668:Kidney / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000502:physiology; D007671:Kidney Concentrating Ability; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D012079:Renal Circulation
D003287:Contrast Media; D006571:Heterocyclic Compounds; D009942:Organometallic Compounds; C050823:gadolinium 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-N,N',N'',N'''-tetraacetate; D005682:Gadolinium; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA