Fast selective black blood MR imaging.

To overcome the problems associated with gradient-echo (GRE) magnetic resonance (MR) angiography ("bright blood" imaging) and "black blood" imaging with presaturated spin-echo (SE) pulse sequences, the authors devised a new approach for black blood imaging. Their method, selective preinversion fast imaging with steady precession (turboFISP), uses a segmented GRE sequence for fast data acquisition. Nulling of vascular signal results, and stationary tissue appears bright. The method was compared with flow-compensated GRE imaging in a phantom and with GRE imaging and presaturated SE imaging in seven healthy volunteers and nine patients with various cardiac diseases. With phantoms, the selective preinversion turboFISP sequence produced better flow contrast than did GRE sequences. Selective preinversion turboFISP was often superior to SE imaging for depicting vessel lumina, particularly in patients with slowly flowing blood. Arteries appeared dark in selective black blood angiograms, but veins did not. Selective preinversion turboFISP can be used with bright blood GRE imaging to depict vessel lumina, and its capability for image acquisition within a breath hold and with cardiac gating minimizes artifacts from respiration and motion of the vessel wall.