Clinical recommendations for cardiovascular magnetic resonance mapping of T1, T2, T2* and extracellular volume: A consensus statement by the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (SCMR) endorsed by the European Association for Cardiovascular Imaging (EACVI)

Exercise-induced myocardial T1 increase and right ventricular dysfunction in recreational cyclists: a CMR study

PURPOSE

Although cardiac troponin I (cTnI) increase following strenuous exercise has been observed, the development of exercise-induced myocardial edema remains unclear. Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) native T1/T2 mapping is sensitive to the pathological increase of myocardial water content. Therefore, we evaluated exercise-induced acute myocardial changes in recreational cyclists by incorporating biomarkers, echocardiography and CMR.

METHODS

Nineteen male recreational participants (age: 48 ± 5 years) cycled the 'L'étape du tour de France" (EDT) 2021' (175 km, 3600 altimeters). One week before the race, a maximal graded cycling test was conducted to determine individual heart rate (HR) training zones. One day before and 3-6 h post-exercise 3 T CMR and echocardiography were performed to assess myocardial native T1/T2 relaxation times and cardiac function, and blood samples were collected. All participants were asked to cycle 2 h around their anaerobic gas exchange threshold (HR zone 4).

RESULTS

Eighteen participants completed the EDT stage in 537 ± 58 min, including 154 ± 61 min of cycling time in HR zone 4. Post-race right ventricular (RV) dysfunction with reduced strain and increased volumes (p < 0.05) and borderline significant left ventricular global longitudinal strain reduction (p = 0.05) were observed. Post-exercise cTnI (0.75 ± 5.1 ng/l to 69.9 ± 41.6 ng/l; p < 0.001) and T1 relaxation times (1133 ± 48 ms to 1182 ± 46 ms, p < 0.001) increased significantly with no significant change in T2 (p = 0.474). cTnI release correlated with increase in T1 relaxation time (p = 0.002; r = 0.703), post-race RV dysfunction (p < 0.05; r = 0.562) and longer cycling in HR zone 4 (p < 0.05; r = 0.607).

CONCLUSION

Strenuous exercise causes early post-race cTnI increase, increased T1 relaxation time and RV dysfunction in recreational cyclists, which showed interdependent correlation. The long-term clinical significance of these changes needs further investigation.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBERS AND DATE

NCT04940650 06/18/2021. NCT05138003 06/18/2021.

Multimodality imaging in cardio-oncology: the added value of CMR and CCTA

During the last 30 years, we have assisted to a great implementation in anticancer treatment with a subsequent increase of cancer survivors and decreased mortality. This has led to an ongoing interest about the possible therapy-related side-effects and their management to better guide patients therapy and surveillance in the chronic and long-term setting. As a consequence cardio-oncology was born, involving several different specialties, among which radiology plays a relevant role. Till the end of August 2022, when European Society of Cardiology (ESC) developed the first guidelines on cardio-oncology, no general indications existed to guide diagnosis and treatment of cancer therapy-related cardiovascular toxicity (CTR-CVT). They defined multimodality imaging role in primary and secondary prevention strategies, cancer treatment surveillance and early CTR-CVT identification and management. Cardiac computed tomography angiography (CCTA) has acquired a central role in coronary assessment, as far as coronary artery disease (CAD) exclusion is concerned; but on the side of this well-known application, it also started to be considered in left ventricular function evaluation, interstitial fibrosis quantification and cardiac perfusion studies. Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR), instead, has been acknowledged as the gold standard alternative to trans-thoracic echocardiography (TTE) poor acoustic window in quantification of heart function and strain modifications, as well as pre- and post-contrast tissue characterization by means of T1-T2 mapping, early Gadolinium enhancement (EGE), late Gadolinium enhancement (LGE) and extracellular volume (ECV) evaluation. Our review is intended to provide a focus on the actual role of CMR and CCTA in the setting of a better understanding of cardiotoxicity and to draw some possible future directions of cardiac imaging in this field, starting from the recently published ESC guidelines.

Detection of sympathetic denervation defects in Fabry disease by hybrid [11C]meta-hydroxyephedrine positron emission tomography and cardiac magnetic resonance

BACKGROUND

Myocardial glycosphingolipid accumulation in patients with Fabry disease (FD) causes biochemical and structural changes. This study aimed to investigate sympathetic innervation in FD using hybrid cardiac positron emission tomography (PET)/magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

METHODS AND RESULTS

Patients with different stages of Fabry disease were prospectively enrolled to undergo routine CMR at 1.5T, followed by 3T hybrid cardiac PET/MRI with [11C]meta-hydroxyephedrine ([11C]mHED). Fourteen patients with either no evidence of cardiac involvement (n = 5), evidence of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) (n = 3), or evidence of LVH and fibrosis via late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) (n = 6) were analyzed. Compared to patients without LVH, patients with LVH or LVH and LGE had lower median T1 relaxation times (ms) at 1.5 T (1007 vs. 889 vs. 941 ms, p = 0.003) and 3T (1290 vs. 1172 vs. 1184 p = .014). Myocardial denervation ([11C]mHED retention < 7%·min) was prevalent only in patients with fibrosis, where a total of 16 denervated segments was found in two patients. The respective area of denervation exceeded the area of LGE in both patients (24% vs. 36% and 4% vs. 32%). However, sympathetic innervation defects ([11C]mHED retention ≤ 9%·min) occurred in all study groups. Furthermore, a reduced sympathetic innervation correlated with an increased left ventricular mass (p = .034, rs = - 0.57) and a reduced global longitudinal strain (GLS) (p = 0.023, rs = - 0.6).

CONCLUSION

Hybrid cardiac PET/MR with [11C]mHED revealed sympathetic innervation defects, accompanied by impaired GLS, in early stages of Fabry disease. However, denervation is only present in patients with advanced stages of FD showing fibrosis on CMR.

Vascular effects of biologic and targeted synthetic antirheumatic drugs approved for rheumatoid arthritis: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) increases the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD), with inflammation playing a key role. Biologic and targeted synthetic drugs used to treat RA can induce systemic immunomodulation and may have pleiotropic effects on vascular function, making it crucial to investigate their impact on CVD risk in RA patients.

METHODS

A systematic review of the literature was conducted to investigate the impact of biologic and targeted synthetic treatments approved for RA on various cardiovascular markers, including endothelial function, arterial stiffness, and subclinical atherosclerosis. Our analysis included a search of the MedLine (via PubMed) and Web of Science databases using a pre-determined search strategy. We conducted a narrative synthesis of the included studies due to heterogeneity in study design and outcome measures.

RESULTS

From an initial pool of 647 records, we excluded 327 studies based on their titles and abstracts, and we selected 182 studies for final examination. Ultimately, 58 articles met our inclusion criteria and were included in our systematic review. Our analysis of these studies revealed a positive effect of biologic and targeted synthetic therapies on vascular dysfunction associated with RA. However, the impact of these treatments on subclinical atherosclerosis was inconsistent.

CONCLUSION

Overall, our systematic review provides important insights into the potential cardiovascular benefits of biologic and targeted synthetic treatments for RA by a still unknown mechanism. These findings can inform clinical practice and contribute to our understanding of their possible effects on early vascular pathology. Key Points • Great heterogeneity of methods are used to evaluate the endothelial function and arterial stiffness in patients with RA on biologic and targeted synthetic antirheumatic drugs. • Most studies have shown a considerable improvement in endothelial function and arterial stiffness with TNFi, despite some studies reporting only transient or no improvement. • Anakinra and tocilizumab may have a beneficial effect on vascular function and endothelial injury, as indicated by increased FMD, coronary flow reserve, and reduced levels of biomarkers of endothelial function, while the overall impact of JAKi and rituximab remains inconclusive based on the reviewed studies. • To fully comprehend the distinctions between biologic therapies, more long-term, well-designed clinical trials are necessary using a homogeneous methodology.

Diffuse Myocardial Fibrosis is Uncommon in People with Perinatally Acquired Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection

Background

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains a leading cause of death in people living with HIV. Myocardial fibrosis is well-described in HIV infection acquired in adulthood. We evaluate the burden of fibrosis by cardiac magnetic resonance in people with perinatal HIV infection.

Methods

Individuals with perinatally acquired HIV (pnHIV) diagnosed before 10 years-old and on antiretroviral treatment for ≥ 6 months were matched with uninfected controls. Patients with significant cardiometabolic co-morbidities and pregnancy were excluded. Diffuse fibrosis was assessed by cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR). with native T1 mapping for calculation of extracellular volume fraction (ECV). Viability was assessed with late gadolinium enhancement. The normality of fibrosis was assessed using the Komogrov-Smirnov test. Fibrosis between the groups was analyzed using a Mann-Whitney U test, as the data was not normally distributed. Statistical significance was defined as a p-valve < 0.05.

Results

Fourteen adults with pnHIV group and 26 controls (71% female and 86% Black race) were assessed. The average (± standard deviation) age in the study group was 29 (± 4.3) years-old. All pnHIV had been on ART for decades. Demographic data, CMR functional/volumetric data, and pre-contrast T1 mapping values were similar between groups. Diastolic function was normal in 50% of pnHIV patients and indeterminate in most of the remainder (42%). There was no statistically significant difference in ECV between groups; p = 0.24.

Conclusion

Perinatally-acquired HIV was not associated with diffuse myocardial fibrosis. Early exposure to ART may be cardioprotective against development of myocardial fibrosis in patients with perinatal HIV.

Phenotyping heart failure by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging of cardiac macro- and microscopic structure: state of the art review

Heart failure demographics have evolved in past decades with the development of improved diagnostics, therapies, and prevention. Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) has developed in a similar timeframe to become the gold-standard non-invasive imaging modality for characterizing diseases causing heart failure. CMR techniques to assess cardiac morphology and function have progressed since their first use in the 1980s. Increasingly efficient acquisition protocols generate high spatial and temporal resolution images in less time. This has enabled new methods of characterizing cardiac systolic and diastolic function such as strain analysis, exercise real-time cine imaging and four-dimensional flow. A key strength of CMR is its ability to non-invasively interrogate the myocardial tissue composition. Gadolinium contrast agents revolutionized non-invasive cardiac imaging with the late gadolinium enhancement technique. Further advances enabled quantitative parametric mapping to increase sensitivity at detecting diffuse pathology. Novel methods such as diffusion tensor imaging and artificial intelligence-enhanced image generation are on the horizon. Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) provides a window into the molecular environment of the myocardium. Phosphorus (31P) spectroscopy can inform the status of cardiac energetics in health and disease. Proton (1H) spectroscopy complements this by measuring creatine and intramyocardial lipids. Hyperpolarized carbon (13C) spectroscopy is a novel method that could further our understanding of dynamic cardiac metabolism. CMR of other organs such as the lungs may add further depth into phenotypes of heart failure. The vast capabilities of CMR should be deployed and interpreted in context of current heart failure challenges.

Left ventricular remodeling and its correlates among adolescents with perinatally acquired HIV in South Africa

BACKGROUND

Left ventricular (LV) remodeling and its transitions from compensatory adaptations to LV dysfunction have not been examined in adolescents with perinatally acquired HIV infection (PHIV). We used cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) in a cross-sectional study to characterize PHIV-related progressive LV remodeling in adolescents in South Africa.

METHODS

Adolescents with PHIV on antiretroviral treatment and their HIV uninfected peers completed 3 T CMR examination. We defined LV remodeling by LV mass/volume (M/V) ratio, modelling progressive LV remodeling as increasing M/V ratio. Linear regression models were applied to estimate the correlates of progressive LV remodeling.

RESULTS

Overall, 71 adolescents with PHIV [mean age: 15.2 years; 54% male] and 36 HIV uninfected [15.1 years; 42% male] peers were enrolled. Adolescents with PHIV had lower mean LV M/V ratio (0.68 vs. 0.75 g/mL; p = 0.004) than HIV uninfected peers, without LV hypertrophy in either group. Among adolescents with PHIV, increasing M/V ratio was accompanied by increasing interstitial volume [adjusted mean change (AMC) per 0.1 g/mL M/V ratio: 1.75 mL, p < 0.001] with no change in global circumferential strain (GCS) [AMC per 0.1 g/mL M/V ratio: -0.21%, p = 0.48]. However, in HIV uninfected individuals, increasing M/V ratio was accompanied by increasing peak GCS [AMC per 0.1 g/mL M/V ratio: -1.25%, p = 0.039] with no change in interstitial volume (AMC per 0.1 g/mL M/V ratio: 1.16 mL, p = 0.32].

CONCLUSIONS

Successfully treated PHIV is associated with less severe LV remodeling in adolescence when compared to HIV uninfected controls. LV remodeling in PHIV is associated with disproportionate expansion of the non-contractile interstitium not accompanied by improved GCS.

Myocardial Tissue Characterization in Patients with Hypertensive Crisis, Positive Troponin, and Unobstructed Coronary Arteries: A Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance-Based Study

Hypertensive crisis can present with cardiac troponin elevation and unobstructed coronary arteries. We used cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging to characterize the myocardial tissue in patients with hypertensive crisis, elevated cardiac troponin, and unobstructed coronary arteries. Patients with hypertensive crisis and elevated cardiac troponin with coronary artery stenosis <50% were enrolled. Patients with troponin-negative hypertensive crisis served as controls. All participants underwent CMR imaging at 1.5 Tesla. Imaging biomarkers and tissue characteristics were compared between the groups. There were 19 patients (63% male) with elevated troponin and 24 (33% male) troponin-negative controls. The troponin-positive group was older (57 ± 11 years vs. 47 ± 14 years, p = 0.015). The groups had similar T2-weighted signal intensity ratios and native T1 times. T2 relaxation times were longer in the troponin-positive group, and the difference remained significant after excluding infarct-pattern late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) from the analysis. Extracellular volume (ECV) was higher in the troponin-positive group (25 ± 4 ms vs. 22 ± 3 ms, p = 0.008) and correlated strongly with T2 relaxation time (rs = 0.701, p = 0.022). Late gadolinium enhancement was 32% more prevalent in the troponin-positive group (82% vs. 50%, p = 0.050), with 29% having infarct-pattern LGE. T2 relaxation time was independently associated with troponin positivity (OR 2.1, p = 0.043), and both T2 relaxation time and ECV predicted troponin positivity (C-statistics: 0.71, p = 0.009; and 0.77, p = 0.006). Left ventricular end-diastolic and left atrial volumes were the strongest predictors of troponin positivity (C-statistics: 0.80, p = 0.001; and 0.82, p < 0.001). The increased T2 relaxation time and ECV and their significant correlation in the troponin-positive group suggest myocardial injury with oedema, while the non-ischaemic LGE could be due to myocardial fibrosis or acute necrosis. These CMR imaging biomarkers provide important clinical indices for risk stratification and prognostication in patients with hypertensive crisis.

Motion-compensated T1 mapping in cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging: a technical review

T 1 mapping is becoming a staple magnetic resonance imaging method for diagnosing myocardial diseases such as ischemic cardiomyopathy, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, myocarditis, and more. Clinically, most T 1 mapping sequences acquire a single slice at a single cardiac phase across a 10 to 15-heartbeat breath-hold, with one to three slices acquired in total. This leaves opportunities for improving patient comfort and information density by acquiring data across multiple cardiac phases in free-running acquisitions and across multiple respiratory phases in free-breathing acquisitions. Scanning in the presence of cardiac and respiratory motion requires more complex motion characterization and compensation. Most clinical mapping sequences use 2D single-slice acquisitions; however newer techniques allow for motion-compensated reconstructions in three dimensions and beyond. To further address confounding factors and improve measurement accuracy, T 1 maps can be acquired jointly with other quantitative parameters such as T 2 , T 2 ∗ , fat fraction, and more. These multiparametric acquisitions allow for constrained reconstruction approaches that isolate contributions to T 1 from other motion and relaxation mechanisms. In this review, we examine the state of the literature in motion-corrected and motion-resolved T 1 mapping, with potential future directions for further technical development and clinical translation.

Microstructural and Microvascular Phenotype of Sarcomere Mutation Carriers and Overt Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy

BACKGROUND

In hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), myocyte disarray and microvascular disease (MVD) have been implicated in adverse events, and recent evidence suggests that these may occur early. As novel therapy provides promise for disease modification, detection of phenotype development is an emerging priority. To evaluate their utility as early and disease-specific biomarkers, we measured myocardial microstructure and MVD in 3 HCM groups-overt, either genotype-positive (G+LVH+) or genotype-negative (G-LVH+), and subclinical (G+LVH-) HCM-exploring relationships with electrical changes and genetic substrate.

METHODS

This was a multicenter collaboration to study 206 subjects: 101 patients with overt HCM (51 G+LVH+ and 50 G-LVH+), 77 patients with G+LVH-, and 28 matched healthy volunteers. All underwent 12-lead ECG, quantitative perfusion cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (measuring myocardial blood flow, myocardial perfusion reserve, and perfusion defects), and cardiac diffusion tensor imaging measuring fractional anisotropy (lower values expected with more disarray), mean diffusivity (reflecting myocyte packing/interstitial expansion), and second eigenvector angle (measuring sheetlet orientation).

RESULTS

Compared with healthy volunteers, patients with overt HCM had evidence of altered microstructure (lower fractional anisotropy, higher mean diffusivity, and higher second eigenvector angle; all P<0.001) and MVD (lower stress myocardial blood flow and myocardial perfusion reserve; both P<0.001). Patients with G-LVH+ were similar to those with G+LVH+ but had elevated second eigenvector angle (P<0.001 after adjustment for left ventricular hypertrophy and fibrosis). In overt disease, perfusion defects were found in all G+ but not all G- patients (100% [51/51] versus 82% [41/50]; P=0.001). Patients with G+LVH- compared with healthy volunteers similarly had altered microstructure, although to a lesser extent (all diffusion tensor imaging parameters; P<0.001), and MVD (reduced stress myocardial blood flow [P=0.015] with perfusion defects in 28% versus 0 healthy volunteers [P=0.002]). Disarray and MVD were independently associated with pathological electrocardiographic abnormalities in both overt and subclinical disease after adjustment for fibrosis and left ventricular hypertrophy (overt: fractional anisotropy: odds ratio for an abnormal ECG, 3.3, P=0.01; stress myocardial blood flow: odds ratio, 2.8, P=0.015; subclinical: fractional anisotropy odds ratio, 4.0, P=0.001; myocardial perfusion reserve odds ratio, 2.2, P=0.049).

CONCLUSIONS

Microstructural alteration and MVD occur in overt HCM and are different in G+ and G- patients. Both also occur in the absence of hypertrophy in sarcomeric mutation carriers, in whom changes are associated with electrocardiographic abnormalities. Measurable changes in myocardial microstructure and microvascular function are early-phenotype biomarkers in the emerging era of disease-modifying therapy.

Normal values for native T1 at 1.5 T in the pericardial fluid of healthy volunteers

Aims

T1 mapping cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging has been used to characterize pericardial effusions. The aim of this study was to measure pericardial fluid native T1 values in healthy volunteers to establish normal values.

Methods and results

Prospectively recruited volunteers (n = 30) underwent CMR at 1.5 T, and native T1 maps were acquired using a modified look-locker inversion recovery 5s(3s)3s acquisition scheme. A volume of pericardial fluid was imaged in a short-axis slice and in a slice perpendicular to the short-axis orientation. A reliable measurement had a region of interest (ROI) size > 10 mm2, coefficient of variation < 10%, and a relative difference < 5% between the two slice orientations. In 26/30 (87%) of volunteers, there was a sufficient amount of pericardial fluid to enable reliable measurement. Native T1 of pericardial fluid was 3262 ± 163 (95% normal limits 2943-3581 ms) and did not differ in the perpendicular slice orientation (3267 ± 173 ms, P = 0.75), due to sex (female 3311 ± 177 vs. male 3220 ± 142 ms, P = 0.17), age (R 2 = 0.03, P = 0.44), heart rate (R 2 = 0.005, P = 0.7), or size of the ROI (0.06, P = 0.23).

Conclusion

This study shows that T1 values can be reliably measured in the pericardial fluid of healthy volunteers. It is the first to report normal reference ranges for T1 values at 1.5 T in the pericardial fluid of healthy volunteers.

The Value of Myocardial Fibrosis Parameters Derived from Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Risk Stratification for Patients with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES

The aim of the study was to determine whether myocardial fibrosis parameters of cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has added value in the risk stratification of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) patients.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In this retrospective study, 108 patients with HCM (mean age ± standard deviation, 55.5 ± 13.4 years) were included from January 2019 to April 2022, and were followed up for 2 years to record sudden cardiac death (SCD) adverse events. All HCM patients underwent cardiac MRI and were divided into a training cohort (n = 81; mean age, 56.1 ± 13.0 years) and a validation cohort (n = 27; mean age, 57.8 ± 13.9 years). According to the presence of SCD risk factors defined by the 2020 AHA/ACC guidelines, HCM patients were classified into low-risk and high-risk groups. Cardiac MRI features, including late gadolinium enhancement (LGE), T1 mapping, and extracellular volume fraction (ECV), were assessed and compared between the two groups. Logistic regression analysis was used to select the optimal predictors of SCD from cardiac MRI features and HCM Risk-SCD score to construct prediction models. Receiver operating curve (ROC) analysis was used to assess the predictive performance of the constructed prediction model. Cox regression analysis was also used to determine the optimal predictors of SCD adverse events.

RESULTS

Multivariate logistic analysis showed that the global ECV was the single myocardial fibrosis parameter predictive of the risk of SCD (p < 0.001). The areas under the ROC curves (AUC) of global ECV were higher than those of LGE, global native T1, global postcontrast T1, and HCM Risk-SCD (AUC = 0.85 vs. 0.74, 0.77, 0.63, 0.78). An integrative risk stratification model combining global ECV (odds ratio, 1.36 [95% CI: 1.16-1.60]; p < 0.001) and HCM Risk-SCD score (odds ratio, 1.63 [95% CI: 1.08-2.47]; p < 0.001) achieved an AUC of 0.89 (95% CI: 0.81-0.96) in the training cohort, which was significantly higher than that of HCM Risk-SCD score alone (p = 0.03). The AUC of the integrative model was 0.93 (95% CI: 0.84-1.00) in the validation cohort. Multivariate Cox regression analysis also showed that the global ECV was an independent predictor of SCD adverse events (hazard ratio, 1.27 [95% CI: 1.10-1.47]).

CONCLUSION

The ECV derived from cardiac MRI is comparable to the HCM Risk-SCD scale in predicting the SCD risk stratification in patients with HCM.

Effect of Migalastat on cArdiac InvOlvement in FabRry DiseAse: MAIORA study

BACKGROUND

A small but significant reduction in left ventricular (LV) mass after 18 months of migalastat treatment has been reported in Fabry disease (FD). This study aimed to assess the effect of migalastat on FD cardiac involvement, combining LV morphology and tissue characterisation by cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) with cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET).

METHODS

Sixteen treatment-naïve patients with FD (4 women, 46.4±16.2 years) with cardiac involvement (reduced T1 values on CMR and/or LV hypertrophy) underwent ECG, echocardiogram, troponin T and NT-proBNP (N-Terminal prohormone of Brain Natriuretic Peptide) assay, CMR with T1 mapping, and CPET before and after 18 months of migalastat.

RESULTS

No change in LV mass was detected at 18 months compared to baseline (95.2 g/m2 (66.0-184.0) vs 99.0 g/m2 (69.0-121.0), p=0.55). Overall, there was an increase in septal T1 of borderline significance (870.0 ms (848-882) vs 860.0 ms (833.0-875.0), p=0.056). Functional capacity showed an increase in oxygen consumption (VO2) at anaerobic threshold (15.50 mL/kg/min (13.70-21.50) vs 14.50 mL/kg/min (11.70-18.95), p=0.02), and a trend towards an increase in percent predicted peak VO2 (72.0 (63.0-80.0) vs 69.0 (53.0-77.0), p=0.056) was observed. The subset of patients who showed an increase in T1 value and a reduction in LV mass (n=7, 1 female, age 40.5 (28.6-76.0)) was younger and at an earlier disease stage compared to the others, and also exhibited greater improvement in exercise tolerance.

CONCLUSION

In treatment-naïve FD patients with cardiac involvement, 18-month treatment with migalastat stabilised LV mass and was associated with a trend towards an improvement in exercise tolerance. A tendency to T1 increase was detected by CMR. The subset of patients who had significant benefits from the treatment showed an earlier cardiac disease compared to the others.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

NCT03838237.

Native T1 high region and left ventricular ejection fraction recovery in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy

Native T1 mapping is used to assess myocardial tissue characteristics without gadolinium contrast agents. The focal T1 high-intensity region can indicate myocardial alterations. This study aimed to identify the association between the native T1 mapping including the native T1 high region and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) recovery in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). Patients with newly diagnosed DCM (LVEF of < 45%) who underwent cardiac magnetic resonance imaging with native T1 mapping were included in the analysis. Native T1 high region was defined as a signal intensity of > 5 SD in the remote myocardium. Recovered EF was defined as a follow-up LVEF of ≥ 45% and an LVEF increase of ≥ 10% after 2 years from baseline. Seventy-one patients met the inclusion criteria for this study. Forty-four patients (61.9%) achieved recovered EF. Logistic regression analysis showed that the native T1 value (OR: 0.98; 95% CI: 0.96-0.99; P = 0.014) and the native T1 high region (OR: 0.17; 95% CI: 0.05-0.55; P = 0.002), but not late gadolinium enhancement, were independent predictors of recovered EF. Compared with native T1 value alone, combined native T1 high region and native T1 value improved the area under the curve from 0.703 to 0.788 for predicting recovered EF. Myocardial damage, which was quantified using native T1 mapping and the native T1 high region were independently associated with recovered EF in patients with newly diagnosed DCM.

Quantification of myocardial extracellular volume without blood sampling

Aims

Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) T1 relaxation time mapping is an established technique primarily used to identify diffuse interstitial fibrosis and oedema. The myocardial extracellular volume (ECV) can be calculated from pre- and post-contrast T1 relaxation times and is a reproducible parametric index of the proportion of volume occupied by non-cardiomyocyte components in myocardial tissue. The conventional calculation of the ECV requires blood sampling to measure the haematocrit (HCT). Given the high variability of the HCT, the blood collection is recommended within 24 h of the CMR scan, limiting its applicability and posing a barrier to the clinical routine use of ECV measurements. In recent years, several research groups have proposed a method to determine the ECV by CMR without blood sampling. This is based on the inverse relationship between the T1 relaxation rate (R1) of blood and the HCT. Consequently, a 'synthetic' HCT could be estimated from the native blood R1, avoiding blood sampling.

Methods and results

We performed a review and meta-analysis of published studies on synthetic ECV, as well as a secondary analysis of previously published data to examine the effect of the chosen regression modell on bias. While, overall, a good correlation and little bias between synthetic and conventional ECV were found in these studies, questions regarding its accuracy remain.

Conclusion

Synthetic HCT and ECV can provide a 'non-invasive' quantitative measurement of the myocardium's extracellular space when timely HCT measurements are not available and large alterations in ECV are expected, such as in cardiac amyloidosis. Due to the dependency of T1 relaxation times on the local setup, calculation of local formulas using linear regression is recommended, which can be easily performed using available data.

Differentiation of acute non-ST elevation myocardial infarction and acute infarct-like myocarditis by visual pattern analysis: a head-to-head comparison of different cardiac MR techniques

OBJECTIVES

Parametric cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) techniques have improved the diagnosis of pathologies. However, the primary tool for differentiating non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) from myocarditis is still a visual assessment of conventional signal-intensity-based images. This study aimed at analyzing the ability of parametric compared to conventional techniques to visually differentiate ischemic from non-ischemic myocardial injury patterns.

METHODS

Twenty NSTEMI patients, twenty infarct-like myocarditis patients, and twenty controls were examined using cine, T2-weighted CMR (T2w) and late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) imaging and T1/T2 mapping on a 1.5 T scanner. CMR images were presented in random order to two experienced fully blinded observers, who had to assign them to three categories by a visual analysis: NSTEMI, myocarditis, or healthy.

RESULTS

The conventional approach (cine, T2w and LGE combined) had the best diagnostic accuracy with 92% (95%CI: 81-97) for NSTEMI and 86% (95%CI: 71-94) for myocarditis. The diagnostic accuracies using T1 maps were 88% (95%CI: 74-95) and 80% (95%CI: 62-91), 84% (95%CI: 67-93) and 74% (95%CI: 54-87) for LGE, and 83% (95%CI: 66-92) and 73% (95%CI: 53-87) for T2w. The accuracies for cine (72% (95%CI: 52-86) and 60% (95%CI: 38-78)) and T2 maps (62% (95%CI: 40-79) and 47% (95%CI: 28-68)) were significantly lower compared to the conventional approach (p < 0.001 and p < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS

The conventional approach provided a reliable visual discrimination between NSTEMI, myocarditis, and controls. The diagnostic accuracy of a visual pattern analysis of T1 maps was not significantly inferior, whereas the diagnostic accuracy of T2 maps was not sufficient in this context.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE STATEMENT

The ability of parametric compared to conventional CMR techniques to visually differentiate ischemic from non-ischemic myocardial injury patterns can avoid potentially unnecessary invasive coronary angiography and help to shorten CMR protocols and to reduce the need of gadolinium contrast agents.

KEY POINTS

• A visual differentiation of ischemic from non-ischemic patterns of myocardial injury is reliably achieved by a combination of conventional CMR techniques (cine, T2-weighted and LGE imaging). • There is no significant difference in accuracies between visual pattern analysis on native T1 maps without providing quantitative values and a conventional combined approach for differentiating non-ST elevation myocardial infarction, infarct-like myocarditis, and controls. • T2 maps do not provide a sufficient diagnostic accuracy for visual pattern analysis for differentiating non-ST elevation myocardial infarction, infarct-like myocarditis, and controls.

Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Findings of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Vaccine-Associated Myopericarditis at Intermediate Follow-Up: A Comparison with Classic Myocarditis

OBJECTIVE

To report intermediate cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) findings of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine-associated myopericarditis (C-VAM) and compare with classic myocarditis.

STUDY DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study including children diagnosed with C-VAM from May 2021 through December 2021 with early and intermediate CMR. Patients with classic myocarditis from January 2015 through December 2021 and intermediate CMR were included for comparison.

RESULTS

There were 8 patients with C-VAM and 20 with classic myocarditis. Among those with C-VAM, CMR performed at a median 3 days (IQR 3, 7) revealed 2 of 8 patients with left ventricular ejection fraction <55%, 7 of 7 patients receiving contrast with late gadolinium enhancement (LGE), and 5 of 8 patients with elevated native T1 values. Borderline T2 values suggestive of myocardial edema were present in 6 of 8 patients. Follow-up CMRs performed at a median 107 days (IQR 97, 177) showed normal ventricular systolic function, T1, and T2 values; 3 of 7 patients had LGE. At intermediate follow-up, patients with C-VAM had fewer myocardial segments with LGE than patients with classic myocarditis (4/119 vs 42/340, P = .004). Patients with C-VAM also had a lower frequency of LGE (42.9 vs 75.0%) and lower percentage of left ventricular ejection fraction <55% compared with classic myocarditis (0.0 vs 30.0%), although these differences were not statistically significant. Five patients with classic myocarditis did not receive an early CMR, leading to some selection bias in study design.

CONCLUSIONS

Patients with C-VAM had no evidence of active inflammation or ventricular dysfunction on intermediate CMR, although a minority had persistent LGE. Intermediate findings in C-VAM revealed less LGE burden compared with classic myocarditis.

Usefulness of Three-Dimensional Iodine Mapping Quantified by Dual-Energy CT for Differentiating Thymic Epithelial Tumors

Background: Dual-energy CT has been reported to be useful for differentiating thymic epithelial tumors. The purpose is to evaluate thymic epithelial tumors by using three-dimensional (3D) iodine density histogram texture analysis on dual-energy CT and to investigate the association of extracellular volume fraction (ECV) with the fibrosis of thymic carcinoma. Methods: 42 patients with low-risk thymoma (n = 20), high-risk thymoma (n = 16), and thymic carcinoma (n = 6) were scanned by dual-energy CT. 3D iodine density histogram texture analysis was performed for each nodule on iodine density mapping: Seven texture features (max, min, median, average, standard deviation [SD], skewness, and kurtosis) were obtained. The iodine effect (average on DECT180s-average on unenhanced DECT) and ECV on DECT180s were measured. Tissue fibrosis was subjectively rated by one pathologist on a three-point grade. These quantitative data obtained by examining associations with thymic carcinoma and high-risk thymoma were analyzed with univariate and multivariate logistic regression models (LRMs). The area under the curve (AUC) was calculated by the receiver operating characteristic curves. p values < 0.05 were significant. Results: The multivariate LRM showed that ECV > 21.47% in DECT180s could predict thymic carcinoma (odds ratio [OR], 11.4; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.18-109; p = 0.035). Diagnostic performance was as follows: Sensitivity, 83.3%; specificity, 69.4%; AUC, 0.76. In high-risk thymoma vs. low-risk thymoma, the multivariate LRM showed that the iodine effect ≤1.31 mg/cc could predict high-risk thymoma (OR, 7; 95% CI, 1.02-39.1; p = 0.027). Diagnostic performance was as follows: Sensitivity, 87.5%; specificity, 50%; AUC, 0.69. Tissue fibrosis significantly correlated with thymic carcinoma (p = 0.026). Conclusions: ECV on DECT180s related to fibrosis may predict thymic carcinoma from thymic epithelial tumors, and the iodine effect on DECT180s may predict high-risk thymoma from thymoma.

Electrocardiographic Markers of Adverse Left Ventricular Remodeling and Myocardial Fibrosis in Severe Aortic Stenosis

The optimal timing for aortic valve replacement (AVR) in aortic stenosis (AS) is still controversial and may be guided by markers of adverse left ventricular (LV) remodeling. We aim to assess electrocardiographic (ECG) strain in relation to LV remodeling and myocardial fibrosis. 83 severe AS patients underwent surgical AVR, with preoperative 12-lead ECG, cardiovascular magnetic resonance with T1 mapping and echocardiography with global longitudinal strain analysis. Collagen volume fraction (CVF) was measured in myocardial biopsies sampled during AVR. Patients with ECG strain had more severe AS, more advanced LV remodeling and evidence of heart failure. Patients with ECG strain had more diffuse fibrosis, as evident by higher mean native T1 values (974.8 ± 34 ms vs. 946.5 ± 28 ms, p < 0.001). ECG strain was the only predictor of increased LV mass index on multivariate regression analysis (OR = 7.10, 95% CI 1.46-34.48, p = 0.02). Patients with persistent ECG strain at 1 year following AVR had more advanced LV remodeling and more histological fibrosis (CVF 12.5% vs. 7.3%, p = 0.009) at baseline assessment. Therefore, ECG strain is a marker of adverse LV remodeling and interstitial myocardial fibrosis. Lack of improvement in ECG strain following AVR indicates more advanced baseline LV injury and higher levels of myocardial fibrosis.

Multi-site comparison of parametric T1 and T2 mapping: healthy travelling volunteers in the Berlin research network for cardiovascular magnetic resonance (BER-CMR)

BACKGROUND

Parametric mapping sequences in cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) allow for non-invasive myocardial tissue characterization. However quantitative myocardial mapping is still limited by the need for local reference values. Confounders, such as field strength, vendors and sequences, make intersite comparisons challenging. This exploratory study aims to assess whether multi-site studies that control confounding factors provide first insights whether parametric mapping values are within pre-defined tolerance ranges across scanners and sites.

METHODS

A cohort of 20 healthy travelling volunteers was prospectively scanned at three sites with a 3 T scanner from the same vendor using the same scanning protocol and acquisition scheme. A Modified Look-Locker inversion recovery sequence (MOLLI) for T1 and a fast low-angle shot sequence (FLASH) for T2 were used. At one site a scan-rescan was performed to assess the intra-scanner reproducibility. All acquired T1- and T2-mappings were analyzed in a core laboratory using the same post-processing approach and software.

RESULTS

After exclusion of one volunteer due to an accidentally diagnosed cardiac disease, T1- and T2-maps of 19 volunteers showed no significant differences between the 3 T sites (mean ± SD [95% confidence interval] for global T1 in ms: site I: 1207 ± 32 [1192-1222]; site II: 1207 ± 40 [1184-1225]; site III: 1219 ± 26 [1207-1232]; p = 0.067; for global T2 in ms: site I: 40 ± 2 [39-41]; site II: 40 ± 1 [39-41]; site III 39 ± 2 [39-41]; p = 0.543).

CONCLUSION

Parametric mapping results displayed initial hints at a sufficient similarity between sites when confounders, such as field strength, vendor diversity, acquisition schemes and post-processing analysis are harmonized. This finding needs to be confirmed in a powered clinical trial. Trial registration ISRCTN14627679 (retrospectively registered).

Right Atrial Phasic Function in Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction: Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Feature Tracking and Outcomes

BACKGROUND

This study sought to investigate the prognostic impact of right atrial (RA) size and function in patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) in sinus rhythm (SR) and atrial fibrillation (AF).

METHODS

Consecutive HFpEF patients were enrolled and indexed RA volumes and emptying fractions (RA-EF) were assessed by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR). For patients in SR, feature tracking of the RA wall was performed during CMR. In addition, all patients underwent right and left heart catheterization and 6 min walk distance (6MWD) and N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) evaluations. We prospectively followed patients and used Cox regression models to determine the association of RA size and function with a composite endpoint of heart failure hospitalization and cardiovascular death.

RESULTS

A total of 188 patients (71% female patients, 70 ± 8 years old) were included. Ninety-two patients (49%) were in persistent AF. Eighty-five patients reached the combined endpoint during a follow-up of 69 (42-97) months. After a multivariate cox regression analysis, the impaired RA reservoir strain (HR 0.949; 95% CI [0.909-0.990], p = 0.016), the RA reservoir strain rate (HR 0.991; 95% CI [0.983-0.999], p = 0.028), the RA conduit strain (HR 0.932; 95% CI [0.879-0.988], p = 0.019), and the RA conduit strain rate (HR 0.989; 95% CI [0.881-0.997], p = 0.011) were significantly associated with a worse outcome for patients in SR. In persistent AF, no RA imaging parameter was related to outcome after a multivariate regression analysis.

CONCLUSIONS

In HFpEF patients in SR, CMR parameters of impaired RA conduit and reservoir function are associated with dismal cardiovascular outcomes. In persistent AF, RA parameters lose their prognostic ability.

Increase in intracellular and extracellular myocardial mass in patients with acromegaly: a cardiac magnetic resonance imaging study

BACKGROUND

Acromegaly is associated with an increased left ventricular (LV) mass, as reported in echo-based and, more recently, in a few cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies. One possible explanation for this increased LV mass could be water retention and subsequent myocardial edema.

METHODS

In this prospective cross-sectional study, 26 patients with active acromegaly before and after treatment and 31 controls of comparable age and sex were investigated using cardiac MRI. Cardiac morphology, function, and myocardial tissue characteristics were evaluated. Myocardial T2 relaxation time was used as the main outcome measure of myocardial edema. The study was registered with clinicaltrials.gov (NCT02948322).

RESULTS

Patients compared to controls had greater LV mass indexes (58.1 [54.7-68.6] vs 46.0 [41.3-49.8] g/m2; P < .001) and end-diastolic volume (EDV) indexes (97.3 [88-101.2] vs 81.6 [78.1-96.2] mL/m2; P = .0069) and had comparable global contractile function. T2 values were not different between patients and controls. Both intracellular (43.83 [41.0-50.0] vs 34.32 [28.9-38.7] g/m2; P < .001) and extracellular (15.06 [13.5-17.1] vs 11.6 [10.8-12.7] g/m2; P < .001) LV mass indexes were higher in patients compared to controls. Log growth hormone correlated with myocardial mass (r = 0.75; P < .001). Sex, systolic blood pressure (BP), and the presence of acromegaly were predictors of the LV mass index. The extracellular LV mass index was associated with sex and the presence of acromegaly, whereas the intracellular LV mass index was associated with sex, systolic BP, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. Acromegaly treatment reduced EDV and total and intracellular LV mass indexes without significantly affecting extracellular mass.

CONCLUSION

Acromegaly results in a disease-specific form of LV hypertrophic remodeling, characterized by an increase in both intra- and extracellular mass. The LV mass index and intracellular mass were decreased by treatment.

Pediatric heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, a review

Diastolic dysfunction refers to a structural or functional abnormality of the left ventricle, resulting in impaired filling of the heart. Severe diastolic dysfunction can lead to congestive heart failure even when the left ventricle systolic function is normal. Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) accounts for nearly half of the hospitalizations for acute heart failure in the adult population but the clinical recognition and understanding of HFpEF in children is poor. The condition is certainly much less frequent than in the adult population but the confirmatory diagnosis of diastolic dysfunction in children is also challenging. The underlying causes of HFpEF in children are diverse and differ from the main cause in adults. This review addresses the underlying causes and prognostic factors of HFpEF in children. We describe the pulmonary hypertension profiles associated with this cardiac condition. We discuss diagnosis difficulties in clinical practice, and we provide a simplified diagnostic algorithm for HFpEF in children.

Psychophysical Evaluation of Visual vs. Computer-Aided Detection of Brain Lesions on Magnetic Resonance Images

BACKGROUND

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) diagnosis is usually performed by analyzing contrast-weighted images, where pathology is detected once it reached a certain visual threshold. Computer-aided diagnosis (CAD) has been proposed as a way for achieving higher sensitivity to early pathology.

PURPOSE

To compare conventional (i.e., visual) MRI assessment of artificially generated multiple sclerosis (MS) lesions in the brain's white matter to CAD based on a deep neural network.

STUDY TYPE

Prospective.

POPULATION

A total of 25 neuroradiologists (15 males, age 39 ± 9, 9 ± 9.8 years of experience) independently assessed all synthetic lesions.

FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE

A 3.0 T, T₂ -weighted multi-echo spin-echo (MESE) sequence.

ASSESSMENT

MS lesions of varying severity levels were artificially generated in healthy volunteer MRI scans by manipulating T₂ values. Radiologists and a neural network were tasked with detecting these lesions in a series of 48 MR images. Sixteen images presented healthy anatomy and the rest contained a single lesion at eight increasing severity levels (6%, 9%, 12%, 15%, 18%, 21%, 25%, and 30% elevation in T₂ ). True positive (TP) rates, false positive (FP) rates, and odds ratios (ORs) were compared between radiological diagnosis and CAD across the range lesion severity levels.

STATISTICAL TESTS

Diagnostic performance of the two approaches was compared using z-tests on TP rates, FP rates, and the logarithm of ORs across severity levels. A P-value <0.05 was considered statistically significant.

RESULTS

ORs of identifying pathology were significantly higher for CAD vis-à-vis visual inspection for all lesions' severity levels. For a 6% change in T₂ value (lowest severity), radiologists' TP and FP rates were not significantly different (P = 0.12), while the corresponding CAD results remained statistically significant.

DATA CONCLUSION

CAD is capable of detecting the presence or absence of more subtle lesions with greater precision than the representative group of 25 radiologists chosen in this study.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

1 TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 3.

Native T1 mapping for non-invasive quantitative evaluation of renal function and renal fibrosis in patients with chronic kidney disease

Background

To investigate the role of native T1 mapping in the non-invasive quantitative assessment of renal function and renal fibrosis (RF) in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients.

Methods

A prospective analysis of 71 consecutive patients [no RF (0%): 9 cases; mild RF (<25%): 36 cases; moderate RF (25-50%): 17 cases; severe RF (>50%): 9 cases] who were clinically diagnosed with CKD that was pathologically confirmed and who underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examination between October 2021 and September 2022 was performed. T1-C (mean cortical T1 value), T1-M (mean medullary T1 value), ΔT1 (mean corticomedullary difference) and T1% (mean corticomedullary ratio) values were compared. Correlations between T1 parameters and clinical and histopathological values were analyzed. Regression analysis was performed to determine independent predictors of RF. The areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) were calculated to assess the diagnostic value of RF.

Results

The T1-C, ΔT1 and T1% values (P<0.05) were significantly different in the CKD group, but T1-M was not (P>0.05). The ΔT1 and T1% values showed significant differences in pairwise comparisons among CKD subgroups (P<0.05) except for CKD 2 and 3. ΔT1 and T1% were moderately correlated with the estimated glomerular filtration rate (ΔT1: rs=-0.561; T1%: r=-0.602), serum creatinine (ΔT1: rs=0.591; T1%: rs=0.563), blood urea nitrogen (ΔT1: rs=0.433; T1%: rs=0.435) and histopathological score (ΔT1: rs=0.630; T1%: rs=0.658). ΔT1 and T1%, but not T1-C, were independent predictors of RF (P<0.05). ΔT1 and T1% were set as -410.07 ms and 0.8222 with great specificity [ΔT1: 91.7% (77.5-98.2%); T1%: 97.2% (85.5-99.9%)] to identify mild RF and moderate-severe RF. The optimal cutoff values for differentiating severe RF from mild-moderate RF were -343.81 ms (ΔT1) and 0.8359 (T1%) with high sensitivity [both 100% (66.4-100%)] and specificity [ΔT1: 90.6% (79.3-96.9%); T1%: 94.3% (84.3-98.8%)].

Conclusions

ΔT1 and T1% overwhelm T1-C for assessment of renal function and RF in CKD patients. ΔT1 and T1% identify patients with <25% and >50% fibrosis, which can guide clinical decision-making and help to avoid biopsy-related bleeding.

Arrhythmic Mitral Valve Prolapse With Only Mild or Moderate Mitral Regurgitation: Characterization of Myocardial Substrate

BACKGROUND

Sustained ventricular tachycardia and sudden cardiac death due to degenerative mitral valve prolapse (MVP) can occur in the absence of severe mitral regurgitation (MR). A significant percentage of patients with MVP-related sudden death do not have any evidence of replacement fibrosis, suggesting other unrecognized proarrhythmic factors may place these patients at risk.

OBJECTIVES

This study aims to characterize myocardial fibrosis/inflammation and ventricular arrhythmia complexity in patients with MVP and only mild or moderate MR.

METHODS

Prospective observational study of patients with MVP and only mild or moderate MR underwent ventricular arrhythmia characterization and hybrid positron emission tomography (PET)/magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Coregistered hybrid 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (18F-FDG)-PET and MRI late gadolinium enhancement images were assessed and categorized. Recruitment occurred in the cardiac electrophysiology clinic.

RESULTS

In 12 patients with degenerative MVP with only mild or moderate MR, of which a majority had complex ventricular ectopy (n = 10, 83%), focal (or focal-on-diffuse) uptake of 18F-FDG (PET-positive) was detected in 83% (n = 10) of patients. Three-quarters of the patients (n = 9, 75%) had FDG uptake that coexisted with areas of late gadolinium enhancement (PET/MRI-positive). Abnormal T1, T2 and extracellular volume (ECV) values were observed in 58% (n = 7), 25% (n = 3), and 16% (n = 2), respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Most patients with degenerative MVP, ventricular ectopy, and mild or moderate MR show myocardial inflammation that is concordant with myocardial scar. Further study is needed to determine whether these findings contribute to the observation that most MVP-related sudden deaths occur in patients with less than severe MR.

Native T1 mapping in early diffuse and limited systemic sclerosis, and its association with diastolic function

BACKGROUND

Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is divided into diffuse and limited cutaneous SSc (dcSSc and lcSSc). The dcSSc subtype has more severe internal organ damage. This study aimed to assess whether cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) parametric mapping could detect early cardiac involvement and evaluate differences between these two subtypes.

METHODS

Eighty SSc patients (37 dcSSc and 43 lcSSc) underwent CMR at 3.0 T (Philips Healthcare, Best, The Netherlands) in our hospital between July 2018 and July 2021. We analyzed myocardial damage by CMR parametric mapping and compared it with clinical data.

RESULTS

The median duration of the disease was 10.2 months. The left ventricular ejection fraction was preserved in both groups. DcSSc had significantly higher native T1 (1333.4 ± 71.2 ms vs. 1295.0 ± 42.7 ms, p = 0.006) and extracellular volume fraction (32.6 ± 4.1 % vs. 30.3 ± 4.0 %, p = 0.018) in the mid-ventricular septum as compared to lcSSc, although there were no differences in T2 values. Native T1 values were positively correlated with the E/e' ratio and left atrial volume indices evaluated by transthoracic echocardiography in overall SSc and dcSSc, but not in lcSSc. Logistic regression analysis revealed that native T1 was an independent predictor of left ventricular diastolic dysfunction in SSc patients (odds ratio, 1.194; 95 % confidence interval, 1.021-1.396; p = 0.026). Native T1 was higher in SSc patients with progressive skin lesions. Additionally, there were positive correlations between brain natriuretic peptide, New York Heart Association functional classification, and native T1.

CONCLUSIONS

CMR parametric mapping is a useful tool for detecting myocardial changes. Native T1 was the most sensitive parameter for identifying diffuse myocardial changes in the early stages of SSc and was associated with left ventricular diastolic function. DcSSc had more severe myocardial involvement than lcSSc; therefore, the use of CMR parametric mapping may aid in its prediction.

Ketone ester supplementation suppresses cardiac inflammation and improves cardiac energetics in a swine model of acute myocardial infarction

BACKGROUND

Myocardial infarction (MI) is a major risk factor for the development of heart failure with reduce ejection fraction (HFrEF). While previous studies have focused on HFrEF, the cardiovascular effects of ketone bodies in acute MI are unclear. We examined the effects of oral ketone supplementation as a potential treatment strategy in a swine acute MI model.

METHODS

Farm pigs underwent percutaneous balloon occlusion of the LAD for 80 min followed by 72 h reperfusion period. Oral ketone ester or vehicle was administered during reperfusion and continued during the follow-up period.

RESULTS

Oral KE supplementation induced ketonemia 2-3 mmol/l within 30 min after ingestion. KE increased ketone (βHB) extraction in healthy hearts without affecting glucose and fatty acid (FA) consumption. During reperfusion, the MI hearts consumed less FA with no change in glucose consumption, whereas hearts from MI-KE-fed animals consumed more βHB and FA, as well as improved myocardial ATP production. A significant elevation of infarct T2 values indicative of inflammation was found only in untreated MI group compared to sham. Concordantly, cardiac expression of inflammatory markers, oxidative stress, and apoptosis were reduced by KE. RNA-seq analysis identified differentially expressed genes related to mitochondrial energy metabolism and inflammation.

CONCLUSIONS

Oral KE supplementation induced ketosis and enhanced myocardial βHB extraction in both healthy and infarcted hearts. Acute oral supplementation with KE favorably altered cardiac substrate uptake and utilization, improved cardiac ATP levels, and reduced cardiac inflammation following MI.

A novel and simple cardiac magnetic resonance score (PE2RT) predicts outcome in takotsubo syndrome

OBJECTIVES

To find simple imaging-based features on cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) that are associated with major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in takotsubo syndrome (TTS).

METHODS

Patients with TTS referred for CMR between 2007 and 2021 were retrospectively evaluated. Besides standard CMR analysis, commonly known complications of TTS based on expert knowledge were assessed and summarised via a newly developed PE2RT score (one point each for pleural effusion, pericardial effusion, right ventricular involvement, and ventricular thrombus). Clinical follow-up data was reviewed up to three years after discharge. The relationship between PE2RT features and the occurrence of MACE (cardiovascular death or new hospitalisation due to acute myocardial injury, arrhythmia, or chronic heart failure) was examined using Cox regression analysis and Kaplan-Meier estimator.

RESULTS

Seventy-nine patients (mean age, 68 ± 14 years; 72 women) with TTS were included. CMR was performed in a median of 4 days (IQR, 2-6) after symptom onset. Over a median follow-up of 13.3 months (IQR, 0.4-36.0), MACE occurred in 14/79 (18%) patients: re-hospitalisation due to acute symptoms (9/79, 11%) or chronic heart failure symptoms (4/79, 5%), and cardiac death (1/79, 1%). Patients with MACE had a higher PE2RT score (median [IQR], 2 [2-3] vs 1 [0-1]; p < 0.001). PE2RT score was associated with MACE on Cox regression analysis (hazard ratio per PE2RT feature, 2.44; 95%CI: 1.62-3.68; p < 0.001). Two or more PE2RT complications were strongly associated with the occurrence of MACE (log-rank p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

The introduced PE2RT complication score might enable an easy-to-assess outcome evaluation of TTS patients by CMR.

KEY POINTS

• Complications like pericardial effusion, pleural effusion, right ventricular involvement, and ventricular thrombus (summarised as PE2RT features) are relatively common in takotsubo syndrome. • The proposed PE2RT score (one point per complication) was associated with the occurrence of major adverse cardiac events on follow-up. • Complications easily detected by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging can help clinicians derive long-term prognostic information on patients with takotsubo syndrome.

Magnetic Resonance Fingerprinting: A Review of Clinical Applications

ABSTRACT

Magnetic resonance fingerprinting (MRF) is an approach to quantitative magnetic resonance imaging that allows for efficient simultaneous measurements of multiple tissue properties, which are then used to create accurate and reproducible quantitative maps of these properties. As the technique has gained popularity, the extent of preclinical and clinical applications has vastly increased. The goal of this review is to provide an overview of currently investigated preclinical and clinical applications of MRF, as well as future directions. Topics covered include MRF in neuroimaging, neurovascular, prostate, liver, kidney, breast, abdominal quantitative imaging, cardiac, and musculoskeletal applications.

Comprehensive cardiac magnetic resonance T1, T2, and extracellular volume mapping to define Duchenne cardiomyopathy

BACKGROUND

Cardiomyopathy is the leading cause of death in Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) parametric mapping sequences offer insights into disease pathophysiology. We propose a novel approach by leveraging T2 mapping in conjunction with T1 and extracellular volume (ECV) mapping to perform a virtual myocardial biopsy. While previous work has attempted to describe myocardial changes in DMD, our inclusion of T2 mapping enables comprehensive categorization of myocardial tissue characteristics of fibrosis, edema, and fat to better understand the pathological composition of the myocardium with disease progression.

METHODS

DMD patients (n = 49; median: 12 years-old) underwent CMR, including T1, T2, and ECV. Categories were defined as normal, isolated high T1 (normal ECV, high T1, normal T2), fibrosis (high ECV, normal or high T1, normal T2), edema (normal or high ECV, normal or high T1, high T2), fat (normal ECV, low T1, high T2) or fibrofatty (high ECV, low T1, high T2).

RESULTS

Median left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was 59% with 27% having LVEF < 55%. Those with normal LVEF and no late gadolinium enhancement (37%) were younger in age (10.5 ± 2.6 vs. 15.0 ± 4.3 years-old, p < 0.001). Native T1 was elevated in at least one slice in 82% of patients. Those with high T2 at any slice (27%) were older (p = 0.005) and had lower LVEF (p = 0.005) compared with subjects with normal T2 (73%). The most common myocardial characterization was fibrosis (43%) followed by isolated high T1 (24%). Of the 13 with high T2, ten were categorized as edema, two as fibrofatty, and one as fat.

CONCLUSION

CMR parametric mapping sequences offer insights into Duchenne cardiomyopathy pathophysiology, which should drive development of therapeutic interventions aimed at these targets. Myocardial fibrosis is common in DMD. Patients with elevated T2 were older and had lower LVEF. Though fat infiltration was present, the majority of subjects with elevated T2 met criteria for myocardial edema.

Half-Dose versus Single-Dose Gadobutrol for Extracellular Volume Measurements in Cardiac Magnetic Resonance

BACKGROUND

Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging with gadolinium-based contrast agents offers unique non-invasive insights into cardiac tissue composition. Myocardial extracellular volume (ECV) has evolved as an objective and robust parameter with broad diagnostic and prognostic implications. For the gadolinium compound gadobutrol, the recommended dose for cardiac imaging, including ECV measurements, is 0.1 mmol/kg (single dose). This dose was optimized for late enhancement imaging, a measure of focal fibrosis. Whether a lower dose is sufficient for ECV measurements is unknown. We aim to evaluate the accuracy of ECV measurements using a half dose of 0.05 mmol/kg gadobutrol compared to the standard single dose of 0.1 mmol/kg.

METHODS AND RESULTS

From a contemporary trial (NCT04747366, registered 10 February 2021), a total of 25 examinations with available T1 mapping before and after 0.05 and 0.1 mmol/kg gadobutrol were analyzed. ECV values were calculated automatically from pre- and post-contrast T1 relaxation times. T1 and ECV Measurements were performed in the midventricular septum. ECV values after 0.05 and 0.1 mmol/kg gadobutrol were correlated (R2 = 0.920, p < 0.001). ECV values after 0.05 mmol/kg had a bias of +0.9% (95%-CI [0.4; 1.4], p = 0.002) compared to 0.1 mmol/kg gadobutrol, with limits of agreement from -1.5 to 3.3%.

CONCLUSIONS

CMR with a half dose of 0.05 mmol/kg gadobutrol overestimated ECV by 0.9% compared with a full dose of 0.1 mmol/kg, necessitating adjustment of normal values when using half-dose ECV imaging.

The Role of Multimodality Imaging in Pediatric Cardiomyopathies

Cardiomyopathies are a heterogeneous group of myocardial diseases representing the first cause of heart transplantation in children. Diagnosing and classifying the different phenotypes can be challenging, particularly in this age group, where cardiomyopathies are often overlooked until the onset of severe symptoms. Cardiovascular imaging is crucial in the diagnostic pathway, from screening to classification and follow-up assessment. Several imaging modalities have been proven to be helpful in this field, with echocardiography undoubtedly representing the first imaging approach due to its low cost, lack of radiation, and wide availability. However, particularly in this clinical context, echocardiography may not be able to differentiate from cardiomyopathies with similar phenotypes and is often complemented with cardiovascular magnetic resonance. The latter allows a radiation-free differentiation between different phenotypes with unique myocardial tissue characterization, thus identifying the presence and extent of myocardial fibrosis. Nuclear imaging and computed tomography have a complementary role, although they are less used in daily clinical practice due to the concern related to the use of radiation in pediatric patients. However, these modalities may have some advantages in evaluating children with cardiomyopathies. This paper aims to review the strengths and limitations of each imaging modality in evaluating pediatric patients with suspected or known cardiomyopathies.

Diagnostic Role of Native T1 Mapping Compared to Conventional Magnetic Resonance Techniques in Cardiac Disease in a Real-Life Cohort

We sought to compare native T1 mapping to conventional late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) and T2-STIR techniques in a cohort of consecutive patients undergoing cardiac MRI (CMR). CMR was performed in 323 patients, 206 males (64%), mean age 54 ± 8 years, and in 27 age- and sex- matched healthy controls. In T2-STIR images, myocardial hyperintensity suggesting edema was found in 41 patients (27%). LGE images were positive in 206 patients (64%). T1 mapping was abnormal in 171 (49%). In 206 patients (64%), a matching between LGE and native T1 was found. T1 was abnormal in 32 out of 41 (78%) with edema in T2-STIR images. Overall, LGE and/or T2-STIR were abnormal in 209 patients, whereas native T1 was abnormal in 154 (52%). Conventional techniques and T1 mapping were concordant in 208 patients (64%). In 39 patients, T1 mapping was positive despite negative conventional techniques (12%). T1 mapping was able in conditions with diffuse myocardial damage such as cardiac amyloidosis, scleroderma, and Fabry disease (additive role in 42%). In contrast, T1 mapping was less effective in cardiac disease with regional distribution of myocardial damage such as myocardial infarction, HCM, and myocarditis. In conclusion, conventional LGE/T2-STIR and T1 mapping are complementary techniques and should be used together in every CMR examination.

Medical Radiology: Current Progress

Recently, medical radiology has undergone significant improvements in patient management due to advancements in image acquisition by the last generation of machines, data processing, and the integration of artificial intelligence. In this way, cardiovascular imaging is one of the fastest-growing radiological subspecialties. In this study, a compressive review was focused on addressing how and why CT and MR have gained a I class indication in most cardiovascular diseases, and the potential impact of tissue and functional characterization by CT photon counting, quantitative MR mapping, and 4-D flow. Regarding rectal imaging, advances in cancer imaging using diffusion-weighted MRI sequences for identifying residual disease after neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy and [18F] FDG PET/MRI were provided for high-resolution anatomical and functional data in oncological patients. The results present a large overview of the approach to the imaging of diffuse and focal liver diseases by US elastography, contrast-enhanced US, quantitative MRI, and CT for patient risk stratification. Italy is currently riding the wave of these improvements. The development of large networks will be crucial to create high-quality databases for patient-centered precision medicine using artificial intelligence. Dedicated radiologists with specific training and a close relationship with the referring clinicians will be essential human factors.

Automated T1 and T2 mapping segmentation on cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging using deep learning

Introduction

Structural and functional heart abnormalities can be examined non-invasively with cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR). Thanks to the development of MR devices, diagnostic scans can capture more and more relevant information about possible heart diseases. T1 and T2 mapping are such novel technology, providing tissue specific information even without the administration of contrast material. Artificial intelligence solutions based on deep learning have demonstrated state-of-the-art results in many application areas, including medical imaging. More specifically, automated tools applied at cine sequences have revolutionized volumetric CMR reporting in the past five years. Applying deep learning models to T1 and T2 mapping images can similarly improve the efficiency of post-processing pipelines and consequently facilitate diagnostic processes.

Methods

In this paper, we introduce a deep learning model for myocardium segmentation trained on over 7,000 raw CMR images from 262 subjects of heterogeneous disease etiology. The data were labeled by three experts. As part of the evaluation, Dice score and Hausdorff distance among experts is calculated, and the expert consensus is compared with the model's predictions.

Results

Our deep learning method achieves 86% mean Dice score, while contours provided by three experts on the same data show 90% mean Dice score. The method's accuracy is consistent across epicardial and endocardial contours, and on basal, midventricular slices, with only 5% lower results on apical slices, which are often challenging even for experts.

Conclusions

We trained and evaluated a deep learning based segmentation model on 262 heterogeneous CMR cases. Applying deep neural networks to T1 and T2 mapping could similarly improve diagnostic practices. Using the fine details of T1 and T2 mapping images and high-quality labels, the objective of this research is to approach human segmentation accuracy with deep learning.

Beneficial effects of nintedanib on cardiomyopathy in patients with systemic sclerosis: a pilot study

OBJECTIVES

Nintedanib is an inhibitor of tyrosine kinases that has been shown to slow the progression of interstitial lung disease (ILD), including ILD associated with SSc. The aim of this study was to explore the effect of nintedanib on cardiomyopathy associated with systemic sclerosis (SSc).

METHODS

Twenty consecutively hospitalized patients with SSc-ILD were enrolled and prospectively followed. The rate of change at 6 months in cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) parametric mapping, including myocardial extracellular volume, was primarily evaluated. Other endpoints included changes in CMR functional parameters, echocardiographic parameters, modified Rodnan skin score, serum biomarkers and pulmonary function test.

RESULTS

Nintedanib was administered in 10 patients, whereas the other 10 were treated without nintedanib or watched, according to ILD severity and progression. Baseline values of CMR parametric mapping were not different between the two groups. The rate of change at 6 months in myocardial extracellular volume was highly different, almost divergent, between the nintedanib group and the control group (-1.62% vs +2.00%, P = 0.0001). Among other endpoints, the change in right ventricular ejection fraction was significantly different between the two groups (P = 0.02), with a preferential change in the nintedanib group.

CONCLUSION

Our data indicate beneficial signals of nintedanib on cardiomyopathy associated with SSc. The anti-fibrotic effect of nintedanib might not be limited to the lung.

Nebivolol versus placebo in patients undergoing anthracyclines (CONTROL Trial): rationale and study design

AIMS

Anthracyclines are the chemotherapeutic agents most frequently associated with cardiotoxicity, while remaining widely used. Different neurohormonal blockers have been tested as a primary prevention strategy to prevent or attenuate the onset of cardiotoxicity, with mixed results. However, prior studies were often limited by a nonblinded design and an assessment of cardiac function based only on echocardiographic imaging. Moreover, on the basis of an improved mechanistic understanding of anthracycline cardiotoxicity mechanisms, new therapeutic strategies have been proposed. Among cardioprotective drugs, nebivolol might be able to prevent the cardiotoxic effects of anthracyclines, through its protective properties towards the myocardium, endothelium, and cardiac mitochondria. This study aims to evaluate the cardioprotective effects of the beta blocker nebivolol in a prospective, placebo-controlled, superiority randomized trial in patients with breast cancer or diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) who have a normal cardiac function and will receive anthracyclines as part of their first-line chemotherapy programme.

METHODS

The CONTROL trial is a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blinded, superiority trial. Patients with breast cancer or a DLBCL, with a normal cardiac function as assessed by echocardiography, scheduled for treatment with anthracyclines as part of their first-line chemotherapy programme will be randomized 1 : 1 to nebivolol 5 mg once daily (o.d.) or placebo. Patients will be examined with cardiological assessment, echocardiography and cardiac biomarkers at baseline, 1 month, 6 months and 12 months. A cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) assessment will be performed at baseline and at 12 months. The primary end point is defined as left ventricular ejection fraction reduction assessed by CMR at 12 months of follow-up.

CONCLUSION

The CONTROL trial is designed to provide evidence to assess the cardioprotective role of nebivolol in patients undergoing chemotherapy with anthracyclines.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION

The study is registered in the EudraCT registry (number: 2017-004618-24) and in the ClinicalTrials.gov registry (identifier: NCT05728632).

Prevalence and pattern of focal and potential diffuse myocardial fibrosis in male and female marathon runners using contrast-enhanced cardiac magnetic resonance

OBJECTIVES

This study analyzed the prevalence and pattern of focal and potential diffuse myocardial fibrosis detected by late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) and extracellular volume (ECV) imaging in male and female marathon runners using cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR).

METHODS

Seventy-four marathon runners were studied including 55 males (44 ± 8 years) and 19 females (36 ± 7 years) and compared to 36 controls with similar age and sex using contrast-enhanced CMR, exercise testing, and blood samples.

RESULTS

Contrast-enhanced CMR revealed focal myocardial fibrosis in 8 of 74 runners (11%). The majority of runners were male (7 of 8, 88%). LGE was typically non-ischemic in 7 of 8 runners (88%) and ischemic in one runner. ECV was higher in remote myocardium without LGE in male runners (25.5 ± 2.3%) compared to male controls (24.0 ± 3.0%, p < 0.05), indicating the potential presence of diffuse myocardial fibrosis. LV mass was higher in LGE + males (86 ± 18 g/m2) compared to LGE- males (73 ± 14 g/m2, p < 0.05). Furthermore, LGE + males had lower weight (69 ± 9 vs 77 ± 9 kg, p < 0.05) and shorter best marathon finishing times (3.2 ± 0.3 h) compared to LGE- males (3.6 ± 0.4 h, p < 0.05) suggesting higher training load in these runners to accomplish the marathon in a short time.

CONCLUSION

The high frequency of non-ischemic myocardial fibrosis in LGE + male runners can be related to increased LV mass in these runners. Furthermore, a higher training load could explain the higher LV mass and could be one additional cofactor in the genesis of myocardial fibrosis in marathon runners.

KEY POINTS

• A high frequency of myocardial fibrosis was found in marathon runners. • Myocardial fibrosis occurred typically in male runners and was typically non-ischemic. • Higher training load could be one cofactor in the genesis of myocardial fibrosis in marathon runners.

Using Dictionary Matching to Improve the Accuracy of MOLLI Myocardial T1 Analysis and Measurements of Heart Rate Variability

We analyzed modified Look-Locker inversion recovery (MOLLI) T1 measurements by applying a dictionary matching strategy and aimed to acquire T1 measurements more accurately than those acquired by the conventional three-parameter matching analysis. We particularly clarified the robustness of this method for measuring heart rate (HR) variability. A phantom experiment using a 3T MRI system was performed for various HRs. The ideal MOLLI signal corresponding to the scan parameter in the MRI experiment was simulated over a wide range of T1 values according to the dictionary. The unknown T1 values were determined by finding the simulated signals in the dictionary corresponding to the measured signals using pattern matching. The measured T1 values showed that the proposed analysis improved the accuracy of T1 measurements compared to those acquired by traditional analysis by up to 10%. In addition, the variability of measurements at several HRs was reduced by up to 100 ms.

Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Relaxometry Parameters, Late Gadolinium Enhancement, and Feature-Tracking Myocardial Longitudinal Strain in Patients Recovered from COVID-19

COVID-19 infection is associated with myocarditis, and cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) is the reference non-invasive imaging modality for myocardial tissue characterization. Quantitative CMR techniques, such as feature tracking (FT) and left ventricular global longitudinal strain (GLS) analysis, have been introduced as promising diagnostic tools to improve the diagnostic accuracy of suspected myocarditis. The aim of this study was to analyze the left ventricular global longitudinal strain (GLS) and the influence of T1 and T2 relaxation times, ECV, and LGE appearance on GLS parameters in a multiparametric imaging protocol in patients who recovered from COVID-19. The 86 consecutive patients enrolled in the study had all recovered from mild or moderate COVID-19 infections; none required hospitalization. Their persistent symptoms and suspected myocarditis led to cardiac magnetic resonance imaging within 3 months of the diagnosis of the SARS-CoV-2 infection. Results: Patients with GLS less negative than -15% had significantly lower LVEF (53.6% ± 8.9 vs. 61.6% ± 4.8; <0.001) and were significantly more likely to have prolonged T1 (28.6% vs. 7.5%; p = 0.019). Left ventricular GLS correlated significantly with T1 (r = 0.303; p = 0.006) and LVEF (r = -0.732; p < 0.001). Left ventricular GLS less negative than -15% was 7.5 times more likely in patients with prolonged T1 (HR 7.62; 95% CI 1.25-46.64). The reduced basal inferolateral longitudinal strain had a significant impact on the global left ventricular longitudinal strain. ROC results suggested that a GLS of 14.5% predicted prolonged T1 relaxation time with the best sensitivity and specificity. Conclusions: CMR abnormalities, including a myocarditis pattern, are common in patients who have recovered from COVID-19. The CMR feature-tracking left ventricular GLS is related to T1 relaxation time and may serve as a novel parameter to detect global and regional myocardial injury and dysfunction in patients with suspected myocardial involvement after recovery from COVID-19.

Cardiac MRI Findings in Patients Clinically Referred for Evaluation of Post-Acute Sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 Infection

Persistent or recurrent cardiovascular symptoms have been identified as one of the hallmarks of long-COVID or post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC). The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and extent of cardiac abnormalities in patients referred for cardiac MRI due to clinical evidence of PASC. To investigate this, two tertiary care hospitals identified all patients who were referred for cardiac MRI under the suspicion of PASC in a 2-year period and retrospectively included them in this study. Patients with previously known cardiac diseases were excluded. This resulted in a total cohort of 129 patients (63, 51% female; age 41 ± 16 years). The majority of patients (57%) showed normal cardiac results. No patient had active myocarditis or an acute myocardial infarction. However, 30% of patients had evidence of non-ischemic myocardial fibrosis, which exceeds the prevalence in the normal adult population and suggests that a possible history of myocarditis might explain persistent symptoms in the PASC setting.

Cardiac T1 mapping enables risk prediction of LV dysfunction after surgery for aortic regurgitation

Background

To assess whether cardiac T1 mapping for detecting myocardial fibrosis enables preoperative identification of patients at risk for early left ventricular dysfunction after surgery of aortic regurgitation.

Methods

1.5 Tesla cardiac magnetic resonance imaging was performed in 40 consecutive aortic regurgitation patients before aortic valve surgery. Native and post-contrast T1 mapping was performed using a modified Look-Locker inversion-recovery sequence. Serial echocardiography was performed at baseline and 8 ± 5 days after aortic valve surgery to quantify LV dysfunction. Receiver operating characteristic analysis was performed to determine the diagnostic accuracy of native T1 mapping and extracellular volume for predicting postoperative LV ejection fraction decrease >-10% after aortic valve surgery.

Results

Native T1 was significantly increased in patients with a postoperatively decreased LVEF (n = 15) vs. patients with a preserved postoperative LV ejection fraction (n = 25) (i.e., 1,071 ± 67 ms vs. 1,019 ± 33 ms, p = .001). Extracellular volume was not significantly different between patients with preserved vs. decreased postoperative LV ejection fraction. With a cutoff-of value of 1,053 ms, native T1 yielded an area under the curve (AUC) of .820 (95% CI: .683-.958) for differentiating between patients with preserved vs. reduced LV ejection fraction with 70% sensitivity and 84% specificity.

Conclusion

Increased preoperative native T1 is associated with a significantly higher risk of systolic LV dysfunction early after aortic valve surgery in aortic regurgitation patients. Native T1 could be a promising tool to optimize the timing of aortic valve surgery in patients with aortic regurgitation to prevent early postoperative LV dysfunction.

Multiparametric mapping by cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging in cardiac tumors

BACKGROUND

There is a paucity of quantitative measurements of cardiac tumors and myocardium using parametric mapping techniques. This study aims to explore quantitative characteristics and diagnostic performance of native T1, T2, and extracellular volume (ECV) values of cardiac tumors and left ventricular (LV) myocardium.

METHODS

Patients with suspected cardiac tumors who underwent cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) between November 2013 and March 2021 were prospectively enrolled. The diagnoses of primary benign or malignant tumors were based on pathologic findings if available, comprehensive medical history evaluations, imaging, and long-term follow-up data. Patients with pseudo-tumors, cardiac metastasis, primary cardiac diseases, and prior radiotherapy or chemotherapy were excluded. Multiparametric mapping values were measured on both cardiac tumors and the LV myocardium. Statistical analyses were performed using independent-samples t-test, receiver operating characteristic, and Bland-Altman analyses.

RESULTS

A total of 80 patients diagnosed with benign (n = 54), or primary malignant cardiac tumors (n = 26), and 50 age and sex-matched healthy volunteers were included. Intergroup differences in the T1 and T2 values of cardiac tumors were not significant, however, patients with primary malignant cardiac tumors showed significantly higher mean myocardial T1 values (1360 ± 61.4 ms) compared with patients with benign tumors (1259.7 ± 46.2 ms), and normal controls (1206 ± 44.0 ms, all P < 0.05) at 3 T. Patients with primary malignant cardiac tumors also showed significantly higher mean ECV (34.6 ± 5.2%) compared with patients with benign (30.0 ± 2.5%) tumors, and normal controls (27.3 ± 3.0%, all P < 0.05). For the differentiation between primary malignant and benign cardiac tumors, the mean myocardial native T1 value showed the highest efficacy (AUC: 0.919, cutoff value: 1300 ms) compared with mean ECV (AUC: 0.817) and T2 (AUC: 0.619) values.

CONCLUSION

Native T1 and T2 of cardiac tumors showed high heterogeneity, while myocardial native T1 values in primary malignant cardiac tumors were elevated compared to patients with benign cardiac tumors, which may serve as a new imaging marker for primary malignant cardiac tumors.

The role of obesity-related cardiovascular remodelling in mediating incident cardiovascular outcomes: a population-based observational study

AIMS

We examined associations of obesity with incident cardiovascular outcomes and cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) phenotypes, integrating information from body mass index (BMI) and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR). Then, we used multiple mediation to define the role of obesity-related cardiac remodelling in driving obesity-outcome associations, independent of cardiometabolic diseases.

METHODS AND RESULTS

In 491 606 UK Biobank participants, using Cox proportional hazard models, greater obesity (higher WHR, higher BMI) was linked to significantly greater risk of incident ischaemic heart disease, atrial fibrillation (AF), heart failure (HF), all-cause mortality, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality. In combined stratification by BMI and WHR thresholds, elevated WHR was associated with greater risk of adverse outcomes at any BMI level. Individuals with overweight BMI but normal WHR had weaker disease associations. In the subset of participants with CMR (n = 31 107), using linear regression, greater obesity was associated with higher left ventricular (LV) mass, greater LV concentricity, poorer LV systolic function, lower myocardial native T1, larger left atrial (LA) volumes, poorer LA function, and lower aortic distensibility. Of note, higher BMI was linked to higher, whilst greater WHR was linked to lower LV end-diastolic volume (LVEDV). In Cox models, greater LVEDV and LV mass (LVM) were linked to increased risk of CVD, most importantly HF and an increased LA maximal volume was the key predictive measure of new-onset AF. In multiple mediation analyses, hypertension and adverse LV remodelling (higher LVM, greater concentricity) were major independent mediators of the obesity-outcome associations. Atrial remodelling and native T1 were additional mediators in the associations of obesity with AF and HF, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

We demonstrate associations of obesity with adverse cardiovascular phenotypes and their significant independent role in mediating obesity-outcome relationships. In addition, our findings support the integrated use of BMI and WHR to evaluate obesity-related cardiovascular risk.

Cardiac MRI-based right-to-left ventricular blood pool T2 relaxation times ratio correlates with exercise capacity in patients with chronic heart failure

BACKGROUND

MRI T2 mapping has been proven to be sensitive to the level of blood oxygenation. We hypothesized that impaired exercise capacity in chronic heart failure is associated with a greater difference between right (RV) to left ventricular (LV) blood pool T2 relaxation times due to a higher level of peripheral blood desaturation, compared to patients with preserved exercise capacity and to healthy controls.

METHODS

Patients with chronic heart failure (n = 70) who had undergone both cardiac MRI (CMR) and a 6-min walk test (6MWT) were retrospectively identified. Propensity score matched healthy individuals (n = 35) served as control group. CMR analyses included cine acquisitions and T2 mapping to obtain blood pool T2 relaxation times of the RV and LV. Following common practice, age- and gender-adjusted nominal distances and respective percentiles were calculated for the 6MWT. The relationship between the RV/LV T2 blood pool ratio and the results from 6MWT were evaluated by Spearman's correlation coefficients and regression analyses. Inter-group differences were assessed by independent t-tests and univariate analysis of variance.

RESULTS

The RV/LV T2 ratio moderately correlated with the percentiles of nominal distances in the 6MWT (r = 0.66) while ejection fraction, end-diastolic and end-systolic volumes showed no correlation (r = 0.09, 0.07 and - 0.01, respectively). In addition, there were significant differences in the RV/LV T2 ratio between patients with and without significant post-exercise dyspnea (p = 0.001). Regression analyses showed that RV/LV T2 ratio was an independent predictor of the distance walked and the presence of post-exercise dyspnea (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

The proposed RV/LV T2 ratio, obtained by two simple measurements on a routinely acquired four-chamber T2 map, was superior to established parameters of cardiac function to predict exercise capacity and the presence of post-exercise dyspnea in patients with chronic heart failure.

Risk prediction in patients with classical low-flow, low-gradient aortic stenosis undergoing surgical intervention

Introduction

Classical low-flow, low-gradient aortic stenosis (LFLG-AS) is an advanced stage of aortic stenosis, which has a poor prognosis with medical treatment and a high operative mortality after surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR). There is currently a paucity of information regarding the current prognosis of classical LFLG-AS patients undergoing SAVR and the lack of a reliable risk assessment tool for this particular subset of AS patients. The present study aims to assess mortality predictors in a population of classical LFLG-AS patients undergoing SAVR.

Methods

This is a prospective study including 41 consecutive classical LFLG-AS patients (aortic valve area ≤1.0 cm², mean transaortic gradient <40 mmHg, left ventricular ejection fraction <50%). All patients underwent dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE), 3D echocardiography, and T1 mapping cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR). Patients with pseudo-severe aortic stenosis were excluded. Patients were divided into groups according to the median value of the mean transaortic gradient (≤25 and >25 mmHg). All-cause, intraprocedural, 30-day, and 1-year mortality rates were evaluated.

Results

All of the patients had degenerative aortic stenosis, with a median age of 66 (60-73) years; most of the patients were men (83%). The median EuroSCORE II was 2.19% (1.5%-4.78%), and the median STS was 2.19% (1.6%-3.99%). On DSE, 73.2% had flow reserve (FR), i.e., an increase in stroke volume ≥20% during DSE, with no significant differences between groups. On CMR, late gadolinium enhancement mass was lower in the group with mean transaortic gradient >25 mmHg [2.0 (0.0-8.9) g vs. 8.5 (2.3-15.0) g; p = 0.034), and myocardium extracellular volume (ECV) and indexed ECV were similar between groups. The 30-day and 1-year mortality rates were 14.6% and 43.8%, respectively. The median follow-up was 4.1 (0.3-5.1) years. By multivariate analysis adjusted for FR, only the mean transaortic gradient was an independent predictor of mortality (hazard ratio: 0.923, 95% confidence interval: 0.864-0.986, p = 0.019). A mean transaortic gradient ≤25 mmHg was associated with higher all-cause mortality rates (log-rank p = 0.038), while there was no difference in mortality regarding FR status (log-rank p = 0.114).

Conclusions

In patients with classical LFLG-AS undergoing SAVR, the mean transaortic gradient was the only independent mortality predictor in patients with LFLG-AS, especially if ≤25 mmHg. The absence of left ventricular FR had no prognostic impact on long-term outcomes.

Longitudinal Changes in the Myocardial T1 Relaxation Time, Extracellular Volume Fraction, and Left Ventricular Function in Asymptomatic Men

(1) Background: Longitudinal changes in myocardial T1 relaxation time are unknown. We aimed to assess the longitudinal changes in the left ventricular (LV) myocardial T1 relaxation time and LV function. (2) Methods: Fifty asymptomatic men (mean age, 52.0 years) who underwent 1.5 T cardiac magnetic resonance imaging twice at an interval of 54 ± 21 months were included in this study. The LV myocardial T1 times and extracellular volume fractions (ECVFs) were calculated using the MOLLI technique (before and 15 min after gadolinium contrast injection). The 10-year Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease (ASCVD) risk score was calculated. (3) Results: No significant differences in the following parameters were noted between the initial and follow-up assessments: LV ejection fraction (65.0 ± 6.7% vs. 63.6 ± 6.3%, p = 0.12), LV mass/end-diastolic volume ratio (0.82 ± 0.12 vs. 0.80 ± 0.14, p = 0.16), native T1 relaxation time (982 ± 36 vs. 977 ± 37 ms, p = 0.46), and ECVF (24.97 ± 2.38% vs. 25.02 ± 2.41%, p = 0.89). The following parameters decreased significantly from the initial assessment to follow-up: stroke volume (87.2 ± 13.7 mL vs. 82.6 ± 15.3 mL, p = 0.01), cardiac output (5.79 ± 1.17 vs. 5.50 ± 1.04 L/min, p = 0.01), and LV mass index (110.16 ± 22.38 vs. 104.32 ± 18.26 g/m², p = 0.01). The 10-year ASCVD risk score also remained unchanged between the two timepoints (4.71 ± 0.19% vs. 5.16 ± 0.24%, p = 0.14). (4) Conclusion: Myocardial T1 values and ECVFs were stable over time in the same middle-aged men.