Abdominal imaging
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Magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) has been used to image abdominal vessels less frequently than renal arteries. Until the use of fast contrast-enhanced (CE) techniques, an important limitation was the acquisition time of phase-contrast or time-of-flight imaging and, consequently, the creation of motion artifacts. Recent advances in MRA technology have shortened acquisition times, so it is now possible to obtain successive images in the arterial and then the portal phase. ⋯ CE-MRA is superior to DSA for the simultaneous exploration of the aorta, renal arteries, and iliac arteries, thereby providing a panoramic view of abdominal vascular involvement. MRA can be coupled with measurements of flow. With this functional approach, MRA is the only modality that can completely assess vascular diseases of the abdomen.