Practical Guide to Interpreting Cardiac Magnetic Resonance in Patients with Cardiac Masses

Abstract

It is common for a cardiac mass to be discovered accidentally during an echocardiographic examination. Following the relief of a cardiac mass, being able to evaluate and characterize it using non-invasive imaging methods is critical. Echocardiography, computed tomography (CT), cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR), and positron emission tomography (PET) are the main imaging modalities used to evaluate cardiac masses. Although multimodal imaging often allows for a better assessment, CMR is the best technique for the non-invasive characterization of tissues, as the different MR sequences help in the diagnosis of cardiac masses. This article provides detailed descriptions of each CMR sequence employed in the evaluation of cardiac masses, underlining the potential information it can provide. The description in the individual sequences provides useful guidance to the radiologist in performing the examination.

Cardiac Masses and Pseudomasses: An Overview about Diagnostic Imaging and Clinical Background

“…Usually performed MR imaging sequences are cine images, T1 and T2 black blood images, first-pass perfusion sequences, early gadolinium enhancement, postcontrast T1-weighted images, and late gadolinium enhancement. Moreover, native T1, T2 and postcontrast T1 mapping sequences can be acquired in order to calculate T1 time, T2 time and extracellular volume, with the aim of displaying them voxel by voxel on parametric maps and helping in tissue characterization [85][86][87][88][89][90].…”