MRI Constructive Interference in the Steady State (CISS):
Nicht-Invasive Visualisierung Duraler Arteriovenöser Fisteln

Hintergrund

Dural arteriovenous fistulae (dAVF) are vessel malformations in the area of the spinal cord. They can cause a variety of somatic diseases. The traditional way to examine such malformations is digital subtraction angiography (DSA). This medical imaging method requires the injection of contrast medium into several segmental arteries of the vertebral column in a highly difficult and time-consuming procedure. An additional drawback of DSA is the fact, that it only delivers projection images similar to traditional X-ray techniques. Due to the missing depth information it is considerably difficult to understand spatial relations of complex vessel structures.

As an alternative approach, a specialized MR sequence called MR-CISS is used to record volume data of the vertebral column. In this section we will introduce and examine a visualization approach based on such data. It supplements the traditional DSA examination by significantly reducing the number of dye injections which are required to determine the exact position of the fistula. The aim of this approach is not to substitute traditional DSA examinations completely, since DSA represents a well-known standard for such cases.

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