scholarly journals Inter- and Intra-Rater Reliability of Individual Cerebral Blood Flow Measured by Quantitative Vessel-Flow Phase-Contrast MRI

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 3099
Author(s):  
Kwang-Hwa Chang ◽  
Yuan-Hao Lee ◽  
Chia-Yuen Chen ◽  
Ming-Fang Lin ◽  
Ying Chin Lin ◽  
...  

Vessel flow quantification by two-dimensional (2D) phase-contrast magnetic resonance imaging (PC-MRI) using a three-dimensional (3D) magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) model to measure cerebral blood flow has unclear analytical reliability. The present study aimed to determine the inter- and intra-rater reliability of quantitative vessel-flow PC-MRI and potential factors influencing its consistency. We prospectively recruited 30 Asian participants (aged 20–90 years; 16 women; 22 healthy and 8 stroke patients) for performing 1.5-T MR equipped with a head coil. Each participant was first scanned for time-of-flight magnetic resonance angiography (TOF-MRA) images for localization of intracranial arteries. The 2D PC-MRI for each cerebral artery (total 13 arteries in fixed order) was performed twice by two well-trained operators in optimal position. Using the same 3D MRA as a map and facilitated with the non-invasive optimal vessel analysis (NOVA) system, each scan was taken on a plane perpendicular to the target artery. Two consecutive full 13-artery scans were performed at least 15 min apart after participants were removed from the scanner table and then repositioned. A total of four PC flow images obtained from each target artery were transmitted to a workstation facilitated with the NOVA system. Flow data were calculated semi-automatically by the NOVA system after a few simple steps. Two-way mixed-effect models and standard errors of measurements were used. In 13 cerebral arteries, repeatability, using the intra-rater estimate expressed as the average-measures intraclass correlation coefficient, ranged from 0.641 to 0.954, and reproducibility, using the inter-rater estimate, ranged from 0.672 to 0.977. Except in the middle cerebral artery and the distal segment of the anterior cerebral artery, repeatability and reproducibility were excellent (intraclass correlation coefficient exceeded 0.8). The use of quantitative vessel-flow PC-MRI is a precise means to measure blood flow in most target cerebral arteries. This was evidenced by inter-rater and intra-rater correlations that were good/excellent, indicating good reproducibility and repeatability.

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhen-An Hwang ◽  
Chia-Wei Li ◽  
Chien-Yuan Eddy Lin ◽  
Jyh-Horng Chen ◽  
Chia-Yuen Chen ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Cerebral blood flow (CBF) and the morphology of the cerebral arteries are important for characterizing cerebrovascular disease. Silent magnetic resonance angiography (Silent MRA) is a MRA technique focusing on arterial structural delineation. This study was conducted to investigate the correlation between Silent MRA and CBF quantification, which has not yet been reported. Methods Both the Silent MRA and time-of-flight magnetic resonance angiography scans were applied in seventeen healthy participants to acquire the arterial structure and to find arterial intensities. Phase-contrast MRA (PC-MRA) was then used to perform the quantitative CBF measurement of 13 cerebral arteries. Due to different dataset baseline signal level of Silent MRA, the signal intensities of the selected 13 cerebral arteries were normalized to the selected ROIs of bilateral internal carotid arteries. The normalized signal intensities were used to determine the relationship between Silent MRA and CBF. Results The image intensity distribution of arterial regions generated by Silent MRA showed similar laminar shape as the phase distribution by PC-MRA (correlation coefficient > 0.62). Moreover, in both the results of individual and group-leveled analysis, the intensity value of arterial regions by Silent MRA showed positively correlation with the CBF by PC-MRA. The coefficient of determination (R2) of individual trends ranged from 0.242 to 0.956, and the R2 of group-leveled result was 0.550. Conclusions This study demonstrates that Silent MRA provides valuable CBF information despite arterial structure, rendering it a potential tool for screening for cerebrovascular disease.


Nosotchu ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 38 (5) ◽  
pp. 307-312
Author(s):  
Yuichiro Toyama ◽  
Yoshiyuki Wakugawa ◽  
Masahiro Yasaka ◽  
Kotaro Yasumori ◽  
Masaki Saitoh ◽  
...  

2012 ◽  
Vol 302 (6) ◽  
pp. H1330-H1339 ◽  
Author(s):  
Virginie Bolduc ◽  
Edward Baraghis ◽  
Natacha Duquette ◽  
Nathalie Thorin-Trescases ◽  
Jean Lambert ◽  
...  

Endothelial dysfunction and oxidative stress contribute to the atherosclerotic process that includes stiffening of large peripheral arteries. In contrast, our laboratory previously reported a paradoxical increase in cerebrovascular compliance in LDLr−/−:hApoB+/+ atherosclerotic (ATX) mice ( 7 ). We hypothesized that prevention of cerebral artery endothelial dysfunction with a chronic dietary antioxidant intake would normalize the changes in cerebral artery wall structure and biomechanics and prevent the decline in basal cerebral blood flow associated with atherosclerosis. Three-month-old ATX mice were treated, or not, for 3 mo with the polyphenol (+)-catechin (CAT; 30 mg·kg−1·day−1) and compared with wild-type controls. In isolated, pressurized cerebral arteries from ATX mice, CAT prevented endothelial dysfunction (deterioration of endothelium-dependent, flow-mediated dilations; P < 0.05), the inward hypertrophic structural remodeling (increase in the wall-to-lumen ratio; P < 0.05), and the rise in cerebrovascular compliance (rightward shift of the stress-strain curve measured in passive conditions, reflecting mechanical properties of the arterial wall; P < 0.05). Doppler optical coherence tomography imaging in vivo confirmed these findings, showing that cerebral compliance was higher in ATX mice and normalized by CAT ( P < 0.05). CAT also prevented basal cerebral hypoperfusion in ATX mice ( P < 0.05). Active remodeling of the cerebrovascular wall in ATX mice was further suggested by the increase ( P < 0.05) in pro-metalloproteinase-9 activity, which was normalized by CAT. We conclude that, by preserving the endothelial function, a chronic treatment with CAT prevents the deleterious effect of severe dyslipidemia on cerebral artery wall structure and biomechanical properties, contributing to preserving resting cerebral blood flow.


2014 ◽  
Vol 117 (10) ◽  
pp. 1090-1096 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole S. Coverdale ◽  
Joseph S. Gati ◽  
Oksana Opalevych ◽  
Amanda Perrotta ◽  
J. Kevin Shoemaker

To establish the accuracy of transcranial Doppler ultrasound (TCD) measures of middle cerebral artery (MCA) cerebral blood flow velocity (CBFV) as a surrogate of cerebral blood flow (CBF) during hypercapnia (HC) and hypocapnia (HO), we examined whether the cross-sectional area (CSA) of the MCA changed during HC or HO and whether TCD-based estimates of CBFV were equivalent to estimates from phase contrast (PC) magnetic resonance imaging. MCA CSA was measured from 3T magnetic resonance images during baseline, HO (hyperventilation at 30 breaths/min), and HC (6% carbon dioxide). PC and TCD measures of CBFV were measured during these protocols on separate days. CSA and TCD CBFV were used to calculate CBF. During HC, CSA increased from 5.6 ± 0.8 to 6.5 ± 1.0 mm2 ( P < 0.001, n = 13), while end-tidal carbon dioxide partial pressure (PetCO2) increased from 37 ± 3 to 46 ± 5 Torr ( P < 0.001). During HO, CSA decreased from 5.8 ± 0.9 to 5.3 ± 0.9 mm2 ( P < 0.001, n = 15), while PetCO2 decreased from 36 ± 4 to 23 ± 3 Torr ( P < 0.001). CBFVs during baseline, HO, and HC were compared between PC and TCD, and the intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.83 ( P < 0.001). The relative increase from baseline was 18 ± 8% greater ( P < 0.001) for CBF than TCD CBFV during HC, and the relative decrease of CBF during HO was 7 ± 4% greater than the change in TCD CBFV ( P < 0.001). These findings challenge the assumption that the CSA of the MCA does not change over modest changes in PetCO2.


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