Myocardial fat deposition after left ventricular myocardial infarction: assessment by using MR water-fat separation imaging.
OBJECTIVE
To prospectively investigate the prevalence of fat deposition in chronic myocardial infarction (MI) by using magnetic resonance (MR) fat-water separation imaging with sampling of the entire left ventricular (LV) myocardium. A subsidiary aim was to determine the relationship between LV fat deposition and scar characteristics, as well as regional and global cardiac functional parameters.


METHODS
Twenty-five patients with LV MI were evaluated in this prospective institutional review board-approved, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act-compliant study after they provided written informed consent. A 1.5-T MR system was used to perform volumetric cine, fat-sensitive, and late gadolinium-enhanced (LGE) infarct imaging. Water-fat separation was performed by using a three-point Dixon reconstruction from in- and opposed-phase black-blood gradient-echo images. Fat deposition location was compared with LGE infarct imaging by using a 17-segment model. Global and regional functional variables, LGE volumes, and fat deposition were compared by using the Pearson correlation, Student t test, and multiple regression.


RESULTS
A fat deposition prevalence of 68% was found in areas of chronic MI. The patients with fat deposition had larger infarctions (30.0 mL +/- 15.1 [standard deviation] vs 14.8 mL +/- 6.1; P = .002), decreased wall thickening (2.3% +/- 20.0 vs 37.8% +/- 34.4; P = .003), and impaired endocardial wall motion (2.9 mm +/- 2.0 vs 5.8 mm +/- 2.6; P = .007). The volume of fat deposition was correlated with infarct volume, LV ejection fraction, LV end-diastolic volume index, and LV end-systolic volume index.


CONCLUSIONS
There is a high prevalence of fat deposition in healed MI. It is associated with post-infarction characteristics including infarct volume, LV mass, wall thickness, wall thickening, and wall motion.
Goldfarb
James W
JW
Department of Research and Education, DeMatteis MRI, St Francis Hospital, Roslyn, NY 11576, USA. James.Goldfarb@chsli.org
Roth
Marguerite
M
Han
Jing
J
D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000473:pathology*; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003287:Contrast Media; D005260:Female; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D016014:Linear Models; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000473:pathology*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D015899:Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
D003287:Contrast Media; D019786:Gadolinium DTPA