Slice-to-Volume 4D flow MRI in pediatric patients with congenital heart disease

Motivation: In the absence of injected contrast agent, the quality of magnitude data from traditional 4D flow techniques can be poor, making structural visualization and blood vessel segmentation challenging. Goal(s): Slice-to-volume 4D flow data has inherently high signal in blood vessels owing to in-flow effects. We apply slice-to-volume 4D flow in pediatric patients and evaluate its accuracy. Approach: 7 pediatric patients were imaged with slice-to-volume 4D flow. Dynamic magnitude reconstructions and angiograms were assessed. The flow accuracy was evaluated using traditional 2D phase contrast MRI. Results: Slice-to-volume 4D flow provided accurate flow quantification along with high quality anatomical and angiographic visualisations without contrast injection. Impact: Volumetric flow imaging was performed using slice-to-volume 4D flow in pediatric patients. The technique provided accurate flow quantification along with high quality anatomical and angiographic visualisations without contrast injection.