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Review
. 2022 Jul 11;11(14):4009.
doi: 10.3390/jcm11144009.

The Emerging Role of Combined Brain/Heart Magnetic Resonance Imaging for the Evaluation of Brain/Heart Interaction in Heart Failure

George Markousis-Mavrogenis  1 , Michel Noutsias  2   3 , Angelos G Rigopoulos  4 , Aikaterini Giannakopoulou  5 , Stergios Gatzonis  4   6 , Roser Maria Pons  5   7 , Antigoni Papavasiliou  8 , Vasiliki Vartela  1 , Maria Bonou  9 , Genovefa Kolovou  1 , Constantina Aggeli  7   10 , Aikaterini Christidi  11 , Flora Bacopoulou  5   7   12 , Dimitris Tousoulis  7   10 , Sophie Mavrogeni  1   7
Affiliations
Review

The Emerging Role of Combined Brain/Heart Magnetic Resonance Imaging for the Evaluation of Brain/Heart Interaction in Heart Failure

George Markousis-Mavrogenis et al. J Clin Med. .

Abstract

Heart failure (HF) patients frequently develop brain deficits that lead to cognitive dysfunction (CD), which may ultimately also affect survival. There is an important interaction between brain and heart that becomes crucial for survival in patients with HF. Our aim was to review the brain/heart interactions in HF and discuss the emerging role of combined brain/heart magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) evaluation. A scoping review of published literature was conducted in the PubMed EMBASE (OVID), Web of Science, Scopus and PsycInfo databases. Keywords for searches included heart failure, brain lesion, brain, cognitive, cognitive dysfunction, magnetic resonance imaging cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging electroencephalogram, positron emission tomography and echocardiography. CD testing, the most commonly used diagnostic approach, can identify neither subclinical cases nor the pathophysiologic background of CD. A combined brain/heart MRI has the capability of diagnosing brain/heart lesions at an early stage and potentially facilitates treatment. Additionally, valuable information about edema, fibrosis and cardiac remodeling, provided with the use of cardiovascular magnetic resonance, can improve HF risk stratification and treatment modification. However, availability, familiarity with this modality and cost should be taken under consideration before final conclusions can be drawn. Abnormal CD testing in HF patients is a strong motivating factor for applying a combined brain/heart MRI to identify early brain/heart lesions and modify risk stratification accordingly.

Keywords: MRI; arrhythmia; brain lesions; brain magnetic resonance imaging; cardiac magnetic resonance imaging; cardiovascular; cognitive dysfunction; depression; heart failure; neuro-psychiatric symptoms.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Combined brain/heart MRI images from a patient with CD and HF (a) inversion recovery image showing extensive myocardial LGE due to myocardial infarction; (b) brain FLAIR image showing WMH in the same patient.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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