Feasibility of aortic pulse pressure and pressure wave velocity MRI measurement in young adults.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the feasibility of assessing, noninvasively, aortic pulse pressure (APP) and pulse wave velocity (PWV) in the ascending aorta of young adults by means of velocity-encoded magnetic resonance (MR) imaging.


METHODS
In a series of 11 healthy volunteers, velocity-encoded MR imaging provided pairs of magnitude and phase-contrast images. Blood flow velocity and aortic cross-sectional area (CSA) were determined with a 30-msec temporal resolution. A model analysis revealed that variation in aortic CSA and in maximal blood flow velocity throughout systole could be used to estimate APP and, hence, to derive PWV by means of two different methods.


RESULTS
Mean +/- SD values of the APP for the series were 54.2 +/- 16.4 mmHg (range 32.2-84.1 mmHg). The ascending aortic PWV mean +/- SD values were 5.03 +/- 1.10 m/second and 5.37 +/- 1.23 m/second according to the two methods, and both estimates were not significantly different (95% confidence level).


CONCLUSIONS
These results are in agreement with previously published data, suggesting that APP and PWV can be determined, noninvasively, in young adults using MRI.
Laffon
Eric
E
Service de Médecine Nucléaire, Hôpital du Haut-Lévêque, Pessac, France. elaffon@u-bordeaux2.fr
Marthan
Roger
R
Montaudon
Michel
M
Latrabe
Valérie
V
Laurent
François
F
Ducassou
Dominique
D
D000328:Adult; D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology*; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination / Q000379:methods*; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D011673:Pulsatile Flow / Q000502:physiology; D011674:Pulse