Identification of viable myocardium within infarct scar by high-resolution manganese-enhanced MRI

Motivation: Manganese-enhanced MRI (MEMRI) appears to be an interesting alternative to late-gadolinium enhancement (LGE) since manganese ions can enter cardiomyocytes through calcium channels, thus allowing intracellular characterization of living cells. Goal(s): This study aims to evaluate the sensitivity of 3D-MEMRI for the characterizing MI scars heterogeneity compared to the clinical gold standard LGE. Approach: Manganese has a long retention time in cardiomyocytes, allowing a longer acquisition time exploited to improve the spatial resolution of 3D MR images (~1 mm3 isotropic). Results: This study confirms the potential of 3D-MEMRI as a more specific method than the clinical gold standard LGE for characterizing MI scars heterogeneity. Impact: The ability of high-resolution 3D manganese-enhanced MRI (3D-MEMRI) to produce a finer characterization of the heterogeneity of the scar constitutes an important step forward in the management of myocardial infarction in the context of cardiac arrhythmias