Right ventricular midwall surface motion and deformation using magnetic resonance tagging. Young, Alistair A., Zahi A. Fayad, Leon Axel. Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand, Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia PA 19104-6086, Department of Bioengineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia PA 19104
APStracts 3:0171H, 1996.
We describe a method for reconstructing the 3D motion and deformation of the midwall surface of the right ventricular free wall (RVFW) using magnetic resonance tissue tagging. Tag points were defined where the tag stripes intersected the midwall contour and were tracked through systole in both short and long axis images. A finite element model of the midwall surface of the RVFW was constructed to fit the midwall shape at end-diastole. The model was then deformed to each subsequent frame by fitting the tag displacements and midwall contour locations. The method was applied to two human studies: a normal subject and a patient with right ventricular hypertrophy. The root mean squared error between model tag planes and tracked tag points was 0.70 mm for the normal heart (180 points) and 0.67 mm for the hypertrophic heart (52 points), both less than the image pixel size of approximately 1.0 mm. The differences in contraction patterns were visualized between the two studies. We conclude that this method allows accurate, non-invasive measurement of in vivo RVFW deformation.

Received 5 July 1995; accepted in final form 11 April 1996.
APS Manuscript Number H607-5.
Article publication pending Am. J. Physiol. (Heart Circ. Physiology).
ISSN 1080-4757 Copyright 1996 The American Physiological Society.
Published in APStracts on 1 May 96