Appearance of the Normal Pericardium on Coronary MR Angiograms

Abstract

We evaluated the appearance of the normal pericardium on breath‐hold MR images used to visualize coronary arteries. A coronary MR angiogram was obtained in 23 subjects (17 healthy volunteers and six patients with no known pericardia! disease) using a breath‐hold K‐space segmented gradient‐recalled echo sequence with fat suppression. Each coronary MR angiographic study included imaging planes equivalent to the following echocardiographic planes: four‐chamber view, vertical two‐chamber view, and two short‐axis views (at base and mid ventricular level). The average pericardial thickness was 1.7 mm (range, 1.5–2.0 mm), and an average length of 60 mm (range, 20–110 mm) of pericardium was visualized. A significantly longer portion of the pericardium was seen in the vertical two‐chamber view and the basal short‐axis view than in the two other views (P <.001). Normal anatomic variations and overlapping structures and image artifacts can alter the appearance of the pericardium. Breath‐hold MR imaging techniques used for coronary MR angiography allow routine, time‐efficient evaluation of large portions of the pericardium.