title: Magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography developments in imaging of venous thromboembolism.
abstract: Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a disease that causes high morbidity and mortality in the population. At present the first-line imaging test for a suspected pulmonary embolism (PE) is computed tomography (CT) pulmonary angiography, and ultrasonography is widely used for the diagnosis of deep-vein thrombosis (DVT). Although these modalities are proven to be safe and accurate, unresolved issues remain, such as whether CT scanning in patients with a suspected PE should be extended to the legs. Another issue is the diagnosis of recurrent DVT. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) offers a number of advantages in the imaging of VTE. Recent developments of scanning protocols with shorter acquisition times, sometimes complemented by navigator gating or making use of endogenous contrast, offer new perspectives for the use of MRI. This review provides an overview of state of the art MRI techniques for the diagnosis of PE and DVT. Furthermore, the use of new contrast agents such as fibrin labeling to detect thrombi are addressed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Epidemiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands. k.van_langevelde@lumc.nl
authors.forename: Kirsten
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: van Langevelde
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.forename: Alexandr
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Srámek
authors.forename: Menno V
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Huisman
authors.forename: Albert
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: de Roos
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000792:Angiography / Q000379:methods; D003287:Contrast Media / Q000494:pharmacology; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D018810:Magnetic Resonance Angiography / Q000379:methods; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D011655:Pulmonary Embolism / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D012306:Risk; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*; D020246:Venous Thrombosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*
chemical_list: D003287:Contrast Media