Characterizing coronary hemodynamics for motion compensation in noninvasive angiography

Garry Liu, PhD candidate

Current methods of cardiac motion compensation for coronary artery imaging make assumptions about the time of minimal cardiac motion in a person's heart cycle and the location of navigator placement for monitoring the motion of a small region of the heart. To improve spatial resolution, noninvasive imaging modalities like MRI and CT need more accurate methods for synchronizing data acquisition with slow-moving periods of the cardiac cycle. My project aims to find robust physiological features that indicate, on an individual basis, the onset and termination of low-motion periods per heartbeat. My goal is to minimize motion artifacts and improve the quality of data acquired to a level sufficient for resolving vessel narrowings, which is one of the major risk indicators of coronary artery disease.

Publications

1. G. Liu, G.A. Wright, “Adapting Trigger Delays to Heart Rate for Coronary MR Angiography”, 14th Scientific Meeting of International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, 2006, Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.
2. G. Liu, G.A. Wright, “Prospective Correction of Trigger Delay Errors Caused by Heart Rate Variability using the Electrocardiogram during Coronary Artery Imaging”, Scientific Meeting of the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance, 2008, Los Angeles, California, U.S.A.