Alex Frydrychowicz1, Daniel Hirtler2, Raoul Arnold2, Alexander Berger1, Aurelien F. Stalder1, Jelena Bock1, Andreas Harloff3, Mathias Langer1, Jrgen Hennig1, Michael Markl1
1Diagnostic Radiology, Medical Physics, University Hospital Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany; 2Pediatric Cardiology, University Hospital Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany; 3Neurology, University Hospital Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
Surgical repair of aortic coarctation can lead to severe secondary complications such as re-stenosis and aneurysms. It was the aim of this study to investigate the influence of aortic flow alterations on the formation of secondary complications in 24 patients after coarctation repair by means of time-resolved 3-directional flow-sensitive 3D MRI at 3T. 3D visualization using time-resolved particle traces and streamlines revealed the different extent of altered flow patterns associated with the post surgical status of the patient. Characteristic changes in 3D flow patterns hint towards a hemodynamic contribution to the otherwise multifactorial etiology of complications associated with aortic coarctation.