David M. Morris1, 2, Caroline Wright3, Mark S. Dobbs1, 2, Philip N. Baker4, Ian P. Crocker3, Penny A. Gowland5, Sue T. Francis5, Colin P. Sibley3, Geoff JM Parker1, 2
1Imaging Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom; 2Biomedical Imaging Institute, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom; 3Maternal and Fetal Health Research Group, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom; 4Department of Physiology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; 5Sir Peter Mansfield Magnetic Resonance Centre, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom
Disruptions in placental morphology lead to impaired function that increases the risk of perinatal mortality and morbidity. Flow-sensitive Alternating Inversion Recovery Arterial Spin Labelling has been applied to investigate the flow characteristic of the placenta. Analysis was carried out to determine the robustness of results generated and clinical applicability. Nine human placentas in normal pregnancies were scanned in the third trimester. These results show the applicability of the technique, its potential to categorize the inhomogeneity of flow in the placenta on a voxel by voxel level, and good agreement with perfusion values using other methodologies.