New black blood pulse sequence for studies of the heart.

The black blood concept is based on the signal void principle of the sequences in Spin Echo, SE or FSE, which are very useful for studying the mediastinum and heart. In this setting, new sequences are continuously introduced to eliminate the artifacts caused by breathing and heart movements. One such sequence is the Double-IR preparation Black Blood FSE. We report our experience in 97 patients, using this new pulse sequence to evaluate cardiac pathology, and establish comparisons with the conventional Spin Echo sequences. The study comprises mediastinal disease and aorta and heart explorations. We consider this new Double-IR preparation FSE sequence to be an excellent choice for evaluating chest, mediastinal and cardiac images. The sequence offers improved spatial resolution of both the vessels and other chest structures with respect to conventional Spin Echo imaging. With the exception of patients presenting severe heart problems, or in the presence of intense bradycardia, the required 16 cycles in apnea are well tolerated. The purpose of the present study is to present our initial results with this new pulse sequence as applied to cardiac pathology, in comparison with conventional Spin Echo imaging.