Optimal Imaging Method for Late Gadolinium-enhanced Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance in Arrhythmic Cases

We determined the procedure to reduce arrhythmia-related ghosting artifacts in the late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) imaging of cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) in patients with arrhythmia by examining the causing factors using phantoms. Inversion recovery gradient echo and phase-sensitive inversion recovery (PSIR) sequences were compared under normal sinus rhythm and premature ventricular contraction (PVC) conditions. Under the PVC condition, trigger interval irregularly performed induced ghosting artifacts. A phase-corrected real image in PSIR, however; demonstrated an accurately positive contrast of pale LGE area indicative of mild fibrosis with minimal ghosting artifacts. The study results indicate that PSIR has an advantage for LGE CMR in patients with arrhythmia. Even without having PSIR method, the 2R-R method ensures consistency of contrast and enables reduction of ghost artifacts.