Coronary artery disease: assessment with a comprehensive MR imaging protocol--initial results.

A comprehensive magnetic resonance (MR) imaging protocol for assessment of coronary artery disease (CAD) is presented. The protocol includes multiphase gradient-echo cine MR imaging for assessment of cardiac function, first-pass myocardial perfusion imaging at rest and during adenosine stress, MR imaging with delayed contrast enhancement for assessment of myocardial viability, and coronary MR angiography with a three-dimensional respiratory navigator-gated technique. In 10 patients, the protocol was completed in 61.5 minutes +/- 5.5 and yielded high image quality and diagnostic accuracy. This protocol may provide an integrated noninvasive screening tool for patients with CAD.