Cardiovascular MR imaging in neonates and infants with congenital heart disease

Abstract

Cardiovascular magnetic resonance (MR) imaging has become an important alternative to echocardiography and angiocardiography in the evaluation of patients with congenital heart disease (CHD). It is increasingly being used in neonates and infants for the initial investigation of CHD or as follow-up after surgery or catheter-guided intervention. Specific indications for cardiovascular MR imaging in neonates and infants include investigation of the thoracic vasculature, quantification of the ventricular volumes, and evaluation of primary cardiac tumors. To obtain good-quality MR images in neonates and infants, it is essential to adjust the technical parameters of the pulse sequences to the small size and fast heart rates of the patients. Various MR imaging techniques are available that are effective in demonstrating the complex morphologic features of the cardiovascular system and that provide additional functional and hemodynamic information. The information provided by cardiovascular MR imaging is useful for treatment planning and, in many cases, may obviate potentially harmful cardiac catheterization.