title: Artifact-free coronary magnetic resonance angiography and coronary vessel wall imaging in the presence of a new, metallic, coronary magnetic resonance imaging stent.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Coronary in-stent restenosis cannot be directly assessed by magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) because of the local signal void of currently used stainless steel stents. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential of a new, dedicated, coronary MR imaging (MRI) stent for artifact-free, coronary MRA and in-stent lumen and vessel wall visualization.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Fifteen prototype stents were deployed in coronary arteries of 15 healthy swine and investigated with a double-oblique, navigator-gated, free-breathing, T2-prepared, 3D cartesian gradient-echo sequence; a T2-prepared, 3D spiral gradient-echo sequence; and a T2-prepared, 3D steady-state, free-precession coronary MRA sequence. Furthermore, black-blood vessel wall imaging by a dual-inversion-recovery, turbo spin-echo sequence was performed. Artifacts of the stented vessel segment and signal intensities of the coronary vessel lumen inside and outside the stent were assessed. With all investigated sequences, the vessel lumen and wall could be visualized without artifacts, including the stented vessel segment. No signal intensity alterations inside the stent when compared with the vessel lumen outside the stent were found.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The new, coronary MRI stent allows for completely artifact-free coronary MRA and vessel wall imaging.
authors.affiliation: Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Technical University of Aachen, Aachen, Germany.
authors.forename: Elmar
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Spuentrup
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ruebben
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mahnken
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Stuber
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kölker
authors.forename: Trung Hieu
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.forename: Rolf W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Günther
authors.forename: Arno
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Buecker
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016477:Artifacts; D003300:Copper / Q000737:chemistry; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry; D018810:Magnetic Resonance Angiography / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends*; D009942:Organometallic Compounds / Q000737:chemistry / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D010165:Palladium / Q000737:chemistry; D010984:Platinum / Q000737:chemistry; D012834:Silver / Q000737:chemistry; D015607:Stents / Q000145:classification*; D013552:Swine
chemical_list: D009942:Organometallic Compounds; D012834:Silver; D010984:Platinum; D010165:Palladium; D006046:Gold; D003300:Copper