Coronary Artery Disease: Myocardial Perfusion MR Imaging with Sensitivity Encoding versus Conventional Angiography

Abstract
PURPOSE: To evaluate the technical performance of sensitivity encoding (SENSE)-accelerated myocardial perfusion magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and prospectively assess the diagnostic accuracy of this examination for depiction of significant coronary artery disease (CAD). MATERIALS AND METHODS: All 102 subjects provided written informed consent, and the local ethics committee approved the study. A saturation-recovery segmented k-space gradient-echo pulse sequence was combined with SENSE to allow dynamic acquisition of myocardial perfusion data on four parallel short-axis MR image sections at every heartbeat. This technique was evaluated in 10 healthy volunteers and in 92 patients scheduled to undergo conventional coronary angiography. Gadopentetate dimeglumine was peripherally injected at rest and during adenosine-induced stress. The maximal upslope of the signal intensity–time profiles was plotted for 16 myocardial segments defined on three MR image sections, and a myocardial perfusion reserve index (MPR...