title: A feasibility study of contrast enhancement of acute myocardial infarction in multislice computed tomography: comparison with magnetic resonance imaging and gross morphology in pigs.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Late enhancement magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of myocardial infarction (MI) is clinically established. There are no reports on MI assessment using state-of-the-art multislice CT technology. For this reason, animal experiments were conducted to examine the applicability of contrast-enhanced ECG-gated multislice computed tomography (MSCT) for the detection of acute MI. The results were correlated with MRI and postmortem tissue staining.
  
  
  METHODS
  Acute MI was induced in 14 pigs by balloon occlusion of the LAD. In 8 animals, the LAD was reperfused after 45 minutes. In 6 animals, the LAD was permanently blocked. MR imaging was performed 15 minutes after the administration of 0.2 mmol Gd-DTPA/kg/bodyweight. Subsequently, 16-slice MSCT was performed at various timepoints after injecting 120 mL of iodinated contrast medium. 2,3,5-Triphenyltetrazolin-chloride (TTC) staining was acquired for all hearts investigated. Correlation analysis was applied to compare the area of MI derived from MRI, MSCT, and TTC. The reperfused infarcts were compared with the nonreperfused infarcts using an unpaired t test.
  
  
  RESULTS
  : Mean infarct area as measured by TTC staining was 18.3% +/- 7.8% of the left ventricular area. Good correlation of the spatial extent of the infarcted area was found for TTC and MRI as well as for TTC and MSCT data obtained 5 minutes postcontrast injection. MSCT imaging demonstrated a significant difference in density (P < 0.001) between nonreperfused (47.0 +/- 6.6 HU) and reperfused (116.4 +/- 19.8 HU) infarction.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In our pilot study, contrast-enhanced MSCT was feasible to assess myocardial viability in pigs. MSCT also affords differentiation of nonreperfused and reperfused acute MI. MI sizes derived from MSCT imaging correlate well to those obtained with MRI and TTC.
authors.affiliation: Clinic of Diagnostic Radiology, University Hospital Aachen, Germany. buecker@rad.rwth-aachen.de
authors.forename: Arno
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Buecker
authors.forename: Marcus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Katoh
authors.forename: Gabriele A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Krombach
authors.forename: Elmar
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Spuentrup
authors.forename: Philipp
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bruners
authors.forename: Rolf W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Günther
authors.forename: Thoralf
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Niendorf
authors.forename: Andreas H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Mahnken
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004396:Coloring Agents; D003287:Contrast Media; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004562:Electrocardiography; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D007089:Image Enhancement; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D015425:Myocardial Reperfusion; D013552:Swine; D013778:Tetrazolium Salts; D036542:Tomography, Spiral Computed
chemical_list: D004396:Coloring Agents; D003287:Contrast Media; D013778:Tetrazolium Salts; C009591:triphenyltetrazolium