Lizette Warner1, Meng Yin2, Richard L. Ehman2, Lilach Orly Lerman3
1Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA; 2Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA; 3Department of Nephrology and Hypertension, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA
Magnetic Resonance Elastography (MRE) is a modified phase contrast MRI technique for quantitatively assessing the mechanical properties of soft tissue by visualization of propagating shear waves. Both fibrosis and turgor may affect the mechanical properties of tissue and in the kidney may threaten the viability and ultimately lead to kidney failure. We have previously shown in a swine model of renal arterial stenosis, the stenotic kidney exhibits moderate but significant interstitial fibrosis. We quantitatively determine with 2D MRE in vivo the effect of renal arterial stenosis on the mechanical properties of swine kidney.