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Eur J Cardiothorac Surg 1999;15:389-393
© 1999 Elsevier Science NL

Detection of coronary artery bypass graft patency by contrast enhanced magnetic resonance angiography¹

^a Department of Cardiac Surgery, Klinikum Grosshadern, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, D-81377 Munich, Germany
^b Department of Diagnostic Radiology, Klinikum Grosshadern, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, Marchioninistr. 15, D-81377 Munich, Germany

Received 20 September 1998; received in revised form 18 January 1999; accepted 27 January 1999.

Correspondence author. Tel.: +49-89-7095-4404; fax: +49-89-7095-8897; e-mail: paolo.brenner@hch.med.uni-muenchen.de

Objective: The subject and purpose of the prospective study was to delineate coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) course and to determine patency of aortocoronary venous bypass grafts (ACVB) compared with internal mammary artery bypass grafts (IMA) in the early postoperative follow-up, by contrast enhanced magnetic resonance angiography (MRA). For control, patients were examined with X-ray angiography and spiral-computed tomography (CT). Methods: Eighty-five patients (74 male/11 female) with a mean age of 63.7 years underwent MRA examination, applying contrast enhanced gradient-echo sequence after an average distance of 7 days from CABG surgery. A 1.5 Tesla magnetom vision (Siemens, Erlangen, Germany) with phased array coil technology was used. Overall, 247 bypass grafts (160 ACVB/87 IMA) were studied with a 3D (three dimensional) ultrashort TE gradient-echo sequence (TR/TE/a:5 ms/2 ms/40°) with 512*512 matrix and 500 mm FoV in single breath-hold technique after Gd-DTPA bolus injection. CABGs were judged in three different parts, including the course of CABG and both anastomoses. CABGs were controlled by angiography and spiral-CT to examine sensitivity, specificity and efficiency of MRA examination. Additional measurement of bypass graft flow velocity of arterial and venous grafts was performed with 2D phase contrast technique in breath-hold technique with ECG triggering. Results: One hundred and thirty-nine of 160 (86.9%) ACVB grafts and 83 of 87 (95.4%) IMA grafts could be visualized. Suspected occlusions of 10 CABGs were confirmed in 80% with a second modality. Five CABGs were false positive in MRA. MRA proved a high specificity (93.8%), sensitivity (89.9%) and efficiency (1.73), especially in detection of IMA to LAD and ACVB to LAD and RCA (Table 1). 3D maximum intensity projection (MIP) reconstruction was helpful in delineating CABG course and in several cases in detecting stenosis of coronary arteries. Results of flow velocity showed a significant higher mean systolic velocity in arterial bypasses than in venous grafts with a higher maximum velocity in systole than in diastole in both grafts. Bypass stenosis in distal anastomosis could not be verified with MRA and flow method. Conclusion: Contrast enhanced 3D ultrashort TE gradient-echo magnetic resonance angiography has the potential for being a reliable method for CABG visualization and CABG patency determination in the early postoperative period. MR flow measurement was not qualified for detection of a bypass stenosis.

Key Words: Magnetic resonance angiography • Flow measurement • Bypass graft patency • X-ray angiography

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