Evaluation of Cerebral Blood Flow Dynamics in Transient Ischemic Attacks Patients with Fast Cine Phase Contrast Magnetic Resonance Angiography

Fast cine phase contrast magnetic resonance angiography (PC-MRA) has the potential to provide a quantitative measurement method for the diagnosis and treatment of cerebrovascular disease. To evaluation the changes of cerebral blood flow and the characteristics of artery lesion distribution in the patients of transient ischemic attacks (TIA). In all, 98 normal subjects and 106 TIA patients who underwent MRI examination within 72 h after the last symptom onset including the DWI sequence to exclude acute cerebral infarction were enrolled. The blood flow of the cranial total, the area of the internal carotid artery and vertebral artery, the average velocity, and the average blood flow were obtained and compared in normal subjects and TIA group. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), t-test, and Kruskal-Wallis test were used for statistical assessments. The total cerebral blood flow of the TIA group and normal control group was no significant statistical difference (P>0.05). The total blood flow decreased with increasing age, and the TIA group was much lower than the control group. The blood flow of the right internal carotid artery in the TIA group had a significant difference compared with controls (P<0.05). However, the same situation did not happen in both of the left internal carotid artery and vertebral artery. Phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging has the potential to evaluate the change of cerebral blood flow in TIA patients. The decrease in the total blood flow and the symptom onset of TIA is consistent. Phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging could provide guidance to the diagnosis of TIA.