title: Diffusion MR tractography of the heart.
abstract: Histological studies have shown that the myocardium consists of an array of crossing helical fiber tracts. Changes in myocardial fiber architecture occur in ischemic heart disease and heart failure, and can be imaged non-destructively with diffusion-encoded MR. Several diffusion-encoding schemes have been developed, ranging from scalar measurements of mean diffusivity to a 6-dimensional imaging technique known as diffusion spectrum imaging or DSI. The properties of DSI make it particularly suited to the generation of 3-dimensional tractograms of myofiber architecture. In this article we review the physical basis of diffusion-tractography in the myocardium and the attributes of the available techniques, placing particular emphasis on DSI. The application of DSI in ischemic heart disease is reviewed, and the requisites for widespread clinical translation of diffusion MR tractography in the heart are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston MA, USA. sosnovik@nmr.mgh.harvard.edu
authors.forename: David E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Sosnovik
authors.forename: Ruopeng
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Guangping
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dai
authors.forename: Timothy G
authors.initials: TG
authors.lastname: Reese
authors.forename: Van J
authors.initials: VJ
authors.lastname: Wedeen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D056324:Diffusion Tensor Imaging / Q000295:instrumentation; D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted; D017202:Myocardial Ischemia / Q000473:pathology*; D009206:Myocardium / Q000473:pathology*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests