Objective: To analyze the anatomic characteristics of the left atrium and pulmonary veins in individuals undergoing ablation for atrial fibrillation and to identify possible anatomic factors related with recurrence. Material and methods: We retrospectively reviewed the CT angiography studies done to plan radiofrequency ablation for atrial fibrillation in 95 patients (57 men; mean age, 65 +/- 10 y). We reviewed the anatomy of the pulmonary veins and recorded the diameters of their ostia as well as the diameter and volume of the left atrium. We analyzed these parameters according to the type of arrhythmia and the response to treatment. Results: In 71 (74.7%) patients, the anatomy of the pulmonary veins was normal (i.e., two right pulmonary veins and two left pulmonary veins). Compared to patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, patients with persistent atrial fibrillation had slightly larger diameter of the left pulmonary veins (left superior pulmonary vein 17.9 +/- 2.6 mm vs. 16.7 +/- 2.2 mm, p = 0.04; left inferior pulmonary vein 15.3 +/- 2 mm vs. 13.8 +/- 2.2 mm, p = 0.009) and larger left atrial volume (91.9 +/- 24.9 cm(3) vs. 70.7 +/- 20.3 mm(3), p = 0.001). After 22.1 +/- 12.1 months' mean follow-up, 41 patients had sinus rhythm. Compared to patients in whom the sinus rhythm was restored, patients with recurrence had greater left atrial volume (81.4 +/- 23.0 mm(3) vs. 71.1 +/- 23.2 mm(3), p = 0.03). No significant differences in pulmonary vein diameters or clinical parameters were observed between patients with recurrence and those without. Conclusion: The volume of the left atrium is greater in patients with persistent atrial fibrillation and in those who do not respond to ablation.

OBJECTIVE. This study aimed to evaluate the long-term prognostic value of coronary CTA (CCTA) in heart transplant recipients. MATERIALS AND METHODS. The records of 114 patients who had undergone a heart transplant (mean age, 61.7 +/- 11.1 [SD] years; 83.3% men) and who underwent CCTA for the surveillance of coronary allograft vasculopathy (CAV) from June 2007 to December 2017 were retrospectively evaluated for the occurrence of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) (cardiac death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, unstable angina requiring hospitalization, coronary revascularization, cardiac arrhythmias, stroke, and retransplant). Patients were classified according to the presence of nonobstructive CAV (lumen reduction < 50%) or obstructive disease (lumen reduction >= 50%) and using a coronary segment involvement score (SIS). Differences in MACE rate between groups were compared. RESULTS. Obstructive CAV was observed in 12 heart transplant recipients (10.5%). During a mean follow-up of 67.5 +/- 41.4 months the overall rates of MACE were 50% and 14.7% in patients with obstructive and nonobstructive CAV, respectively (p < .05), resulting in an odds ratio for MACE of 6 (95% CI, 1.7-21.2). Comparison of event-free survival showed a hazard ratio (HR) of 5 (95% CI, 1.95-13; p =. 004) for patients with obstructive disease. The presence of four or more stenotic coronary segments (SIS = 4) was associated with a higher rate of events (HR, 3.46; 95% CI, 1.46-8.23). CONCLUSION. In patients who have undergone a heart transplant, CCTA offers a significant long-term prognostic impact on the prediction of MACEs.

OBJECTIVE. This study aimed to evaluate the long-term prognostic value of coronary CT angiography (CCTA) in heart transplant recipients. MATERIALS AND METHODS. The records of 114 patients who had undergone a heart transplant (mean age, 61.7 ± 11.1 [SD] years; 83.3% men) and who underwent CCTA for the surveillance of coronary allograft vasculopathy (CAV) from June 2007 to December 2017 were retrospectively evaluated for the occurrence of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) (cardiac death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, unstable angina requiring hospitalization, coronary revascularization, cardiac arrhythmias, stroke, and retransplant). Patients were classified according to the presence of nonobstructive CAV (lumen reduction < 50%) or obstructive disease (lumen reduction ¿ 50%) and using a coronary segment involvement score (SIS). Differences in MACE rate between groups were compared. RESULTS. Obstructive CAV was observed in 12 heart transplant recipients (10.5%). During a mean follow-up of 67.5 ± 41.4 months the overall rates of MACE were 50% and 14.7% in patients with obstructive and nonobstructive CAV, respectively (p < .05), resulting in an odds ratio for MACE of 6 (95% CI, 1.7-21.2). Comparison of event-free survival showed a hazard ratio (HR) of 5 (95% CI, 1.95-13; p =. 004) for patients with obstructive disease. The presence of four or more stenotic coronary segments (SIS ¿ 4) was associated with a higher rate of events (HR, 3.46; 95% CI, 1.46-8.23). CONCLUSION. In patients who have undergone a heart transplant, CCTA offers a significant long-term prognostic impact on the prediction of MACEs.

Purpose: Routine manual tracing of cardiac contours is time-consuming and subject to variability. A fully automated software tool may improve reading efficiency. This study was performed to assess the accuracy, reliability, and time-efficiency of a fully automated left ventricular (LV) segmentation software tool to calculate LV volumes and function compared with conventional manual contouring. Materials and Methods: Sixty-seven consecutive patients (53 male, mean age 62.5 +/- 10.9 y) underwent adenosine stress/rest perfusion cardiac magnetic resonance examination to rule out myocardial ischemia. Double-oblique short-axis 6-mm slice thickness steady-state free precession cine images were acquired to assess LV ejection fraction (EF), end-diastolic volume (EDV), end-systolic volume (ESV), and stroke volume (SV) using manual contour tracing and a recently developed fully automated software tool. The length of time needed to obtain LV volumes with each segmentation method was also compared. Results: Compared with manual contouring, the fully automated software tool minimally underestimated LV-EF (mean difference of 2.9%+/- 3.9%) and SV (mean difference of 4.4 +/- 8.5 mL) and slightly overestimated ESV (mean difference of -6.4 +/- 10.8 mL) and LV mass (mean difference of -14 +/- 20.4 g). EDV quantification did not statistically differ. Reliability for EF (concordance correlation coefficient [CCC]=0.92, 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.88-0.95), EDV (CCC=0.98, 95% CI, 0.97-0.99), ESV (CCC=0.96, 95% CI, 0.94-0.97), SV (CCC=0.93, 95% CI, 0.89-0.95), and LV mass (CCC=0.84, 95% CI, 0.76-0.89) was very good. The evaluated software allowed to quantify LV parameters with a 79% reduction in the time required for manual contouring (414.7 +/- 91 s vs. 85 +/- 16.1 s, respectively, P<0.001). Conclusion: Quantification of LV volumes using the evaluated fully automated segmentation software is accurate and time-efficient.

Background The main sequences used to assess degree of endolymphatic hydrops (EH) are the 3D- inversion-recovery (IR) with real reconstruction and the 3D- fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR). Objectives The purpose of this study is to describe and compare both sequences. Material and methods Forty-two consecutive patients diagnosed with probable or definite Menier ' s disease were referred for hydrops MR examination. Vestibular and cochlear EH in both sequences were read by two independent radiologists, unaware of the patient's clinical status. The primary study endpoint was the concordance in the hydrops detection and severity with both imaging sequences. This was assessed using the Cohen's kappa Kappa statistic for disease grading and Pearson X(2)test to test the difference in detection rates of hydrops. Statistical significance was defined as two-sidedp < .05. Results We obtained an excellent overall concordance, with a kappa of 0.821, (p < .001) when comparing hydrops detection. The degree of concordance is higher in vestibular hydrops than in cochlear hydrops. The 3D-IR sequence detected more hydrops than the 3D FLAIR, (62 vs. 39.5%,p < .03). Conclusion The 3D-IR sequence seems to be superior to the 3D-FLAIR for the assessment of EH. Significance:The 3D-IR sequence should be considered as a standalone parameter for a shorter and optimized EH magnetic resonance imaging protocol.

Objective: To determine the safety of regadenoson for vasodilation in cardiac MRI stress tests to detect myocardial ischemia. Material and methods: We retrospectively analyzed cardiac MRI studies done in 120 patients (mean age, 67 11.6 years; 88 men) with suspected ischemic heart disease or known coronary disease who had clinical indications for cardiac MRI stress tests. All studies were done on a 1.5 T scanner (MAGNETOM Aera, Siemens Healthineers) using regadenoson (5 ml, 0.4 mg) for vasodilation. We recorded cardiovascular risk factors, medications, and indications for the test as well as vital signs at rest and under stress and the symptoms and adverse effects induced by the drug. Results: No symptoms developed in 52.6% of patients. The most common symptoms were central chest pain (25%) and dyspnea (12%). At peak stress, the mean increase in heart rate was 23.9 + 11.4 beats per minute and the mean decreases in systolic and diastolic blood pressure were 7.1+18.8 mmHg and 5.3 9.2 mmHg, respectively (p '0.O01). The response to regadenoson was less pronounced in obese and diabetic patients. The increase in heart rate was greater in symptomatic patients (27.4 11.2 bpm vs. 20.6 + 10.7 bpm in asymptomatic patients, p =0.001). No severe adverse effects were observed. Conclusion: Regadenoson is welt tolerated and can be safety used for cardiac MRI stress tests. 0Z0/9 SERAM. Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility, image quality, and radiation dose of high-pitch coronary CT angiography (CCTA) in orthotopic heart transplant (OHT) recipients. SUBJECTS AND METHODS. Twenty-two consecutive OHT recipients (16 men, six women; median age, 66.5 years [interquartile range, 51.3-70.3 years]; median heart rate, 91 beats/min [interquartile range, 79.3-97.3 beats/min]) underwent CCTA with a third-generation dual-source CT scanner in high-pitch mode to rule out coronary allograft vasculopathy. Data acquisition was triggered at 30% of the R-R interval. Two independent observers blindly assessed image quality on a per-segment, per-vessel, and per-patient basis using a 4-point scale (4, excellent; 1, not evaluative). Scores 2-4 indicated diagnostic quality. Studies were compared with previously performed retrospective ECG-gated examinations, when available. Interobserver agreement on the image quality was assessed with kappa statistics. Radiation dose was recorded. RESULTS. A total of 322 coronary segments were evaluated. Diagnostic image quality was observed in 97.5% of the segments. Interobserver agreement for image quality assessment was very good on a per-patient (kappa = 0.82), per-vessel (kappa = 0.83), and per-segment basis (kappa = 0.89). The median per-patient image quality score was 4.0 (3.0-4.0) for the entire coronary tree. A comparison of image quality scores between high-pitch and retrospective ECG-gated CCTA examinations showed no significant differences, but the estimated mean radiation dose was significantly lower for the high-pitch mode (median dose-length product, 31.6 mGy x cm [interquartile range, 23.1-38.8 mGy x cm] vs 736.5 mGy x cm [interquartile range, 655.5-845.7 mGy x cm], p < 0.001). CONCLUSION. Performing single-heartbeat high-pitch CCTA during the systolic phase of the cardiac cycle in OHT recipients results in diagnostic image quality in coronary angiograms at very low radiation dose.

Objective: To compare the myocardial perfusion reserve index (MPRI) measured during stress cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with regadenoson in patients with heart transplants versus in patients without heart transplants. Material and methods: We retrospectively compared 20 consecutive asymptomatic heart transplant patients without suspicion of microvascular disease who underwent stress cardiac MRI with regadenoson and coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA) to rule out cardiac alto graft vasculopathy versus 16 patients without transplants who underwent clinically indicated stress cardiac MRI who were negative for ischemia and had no signs of structural heart disease. We estimated MPRI semiquantitatively after calculating the up-slope of the first-pass enhancement curve and dividing the value obtained during stress by the value obtained at rest. We compared MPRI in the two groups. Patients with positive findings for ischemia on stress cardiac MRI or significant coronary stenosis on coronary CTA were referred for conventional coronary angiography. Results: More than half the patients remained asymptomatic during the stress test. Stress cardiac MRI was positive for ischemia in two heart transplant patients; these findings were confirmed at coronary CTA and at conventional coronary angiography. Patients with transplants had lower end-diastolic volume index (59.3 +/- 15.2 ml/m(2) vs. 71.4 +/- 15.9 ml/m(2) in those without transplants, p = 0.03), lower MPRI (1.35 +/- 0.19 vs. 1.6 +/- 0.28 in those without transplants, p = 0.003), and a less pronounced hemodynamic response to regadenoson (mean increase in heart rate 13.1 +/- 5.4 bpm vs. 28.5 +/- 8.9 bpm in those without transplants, p<0.001). Conclusion: Stress cardiac MRI with regadenoson is safe. In the absence of epicardial coronary artery disease, patients with heart transplants have lower MPRI than patients without transplants, suggesting microvascular disease. The hemodynamic response to regadenoson is less pronounced in patients with heart transplants than in patients without heart transplants. (C) 2020 SERAM. Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Background: Diffuse myocardial fibrosis can be quantified by calculating extra-cellular volume (ECV) from native and post-contrast T1 values using dedicated single bolus contrast medium injection protocols. Purpose: To evaluate differences in T1 maps and myocardial ECV measurements in routine stress/rest perfusion cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) examinations after injection of single and double dose of contrast medium. Material and Methods: Thirty-seven consecutive patients (30 men; mean age, 62 +/- 13 years) underwent clinically indicated adenosine stress/rest perfusion CMR examination to rule out myocardial ischemia following a conventional split-dose contrast medium injection strategy. Native and post-contrast T1 mapping was performed 15 min after the first (0.1 mmol/kg) and second (0.1 mmol/kg) dose of contrast medium using a breath-held Modified Look-Locker Inversion recovery (MOLLI) sequence. Student's t-test for paired samples, Bland-Altman plots, and concordance-correlation coefficients (CCC) for agreement between T1 and ECV calculations after single and double dose of contrast medium were calculated. Intra- and inter-observer agreement for measurements was also analyzed. Results: Myocardial T1 values after single and double dose of contrast medium significantly differed (mean difference of 114.1 +/- 19.9 ms, P< 0.01). A single dose of contrast agent provided slightly higher ECV values (mean difference of 2.3 +/- 1.1%). CCC for ECV calculations was 0.66. Intra- and inter-observer agreement for all measurements was excellent (CCC >= 0.83). Conclusion: Quantification of myocardial ECV on conventional stress/rest perfusion CMR examination is feasible. T1 maps obtained 15 min after 0.1 mmol/kg of contrast medium provide slightly higher myocardial T1 measurements and ECV values compared with T1 maps obtained after a total dose of 0.2 mmol/kg.