Biomedical subjects

K A Kraft

Publications and source records attributed to K A Kraft.

11 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1994

Angle independent Doppler color imaging: determination of accuracy and a method of display.

A multiple beam technique was utilized to obtain angle independent Doppler color images (AIDCI) using an ultrasonic scanner with a linear transducer. A quantitative study using steady flow models has been performed to evaluate the accuracy of this method in velocity measurements. The results show that the velocity amplitudes measured with this method correlated with those calculated from the measured flow rates (r = 0.95-0.98). The flow angles obtained with this method also correlated with those calculated from the coordinates of the tube image (r = 0.93-0.96). To improve the interpretation of the angle independent results, a method for visualizing two-dimensional flow fields is presented and compared with two existing methods.

Blood Flow Velocity↗

PubMed1991

In vivo brain water determination by T1 measurements: effect of total water content, hydration fraction, and field strength.

This work is concerned with the accurate quantification of brain water content under routine clinical conditions. Gelatin solutions of varying water content are first employed as a model of an edematous brain and longitudinal relaxation measurements are performed at proton Larmor frequencies of 5, 41, 63, and 100 MHz. These are followed with in vivo measurements in an experimental animal model of brain edema at 41 MHz. The results underscore the dominant role of total water content W in the relaxation process and verify the expected linearity between 1/T1 and 1/W. A scheme is presented and experimentally verified at 41 MHz for deducing the exact relationship of 1/T1 vs 1/W at any frequency. Knowledge of this relationship along with precise measurements of 1/T1 at a given field strength permits quantitative in vivo measures of brain water content to be obtained with a precision of about 0.01. It is concluded that routine, accurate, and noninvasive brain water measurements are possible by magnetic resonance imaging in a clinical environment.

Animals↗

PubMed1991

Intracranial vascular abnormalities: value of MR phase imaging to distinguish thrombus from flowing blood.

The interpretation of conventional spin-echo and gradient-echo MR images of intracranial vascular lesions can be complex and ambiguous owing to variable effects on image intensity caused by flowing blood or thrombus. MR phase images, obtained simultaneously with conventional-magnitude images, are useful for evaluating proton motion (i.e., blood flow), and therefore can simplify the diagnosis of the presence or absence of thrombosis within a vascular structure or lesion. Fourteen patients with a variety of intracranial vascular abnormalities (aneurysms, superior sagittal sinus thrombosis, neoplasms adjacent to venous sinuses, and vascular malformations) were evaluated with conventional MR and phase imaging for the presence of blood flow. The phase images correlated with angiography in all cases. Phase imaging was not necessarily better than conventional spin-echo imaging in all cases, but it simplified the evaluation of thrombus vs blood flow in many. In three of five aneurysms, the phase images were diagnostic for evaluating lumen patency whereas the conventional images were ambiguous. Phase imaging was advantageous for detecting tumor invasion of the venous sinus when venous blood was enhanced by gadopentetate dimeglumine. A laminar flow phantom experiment determined the lower limits of sensitivity of phase imaging to be 0.5 cm/sec in the slice-select and 2.5 cm/sec in the read gradient directions. Phase imaging is a simple, reliable technique that can distinguish thrombosis from flowing blood within intracranial lesions. It is easily performed and adds no additional time to the MR examination.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1990

MRI of intracranial sinovenous thrombosis: the role of phase imaging.

Conventional spin-echo magnetic resonance (MR) imaging of venous thrombosis is complicated by the variable appearance produced by the stage of blood clot degradation and velocity of blood flow. Phase MR imaging is a simple method based primarily on whether protons are stationary or moving. A case of superior sagittal sinus thrombosis demonstrates the utility of phase imaging.

Adult↗

PubMed1990

Model studies of nonsteady flow using magnetic resonance imaging.

A bolus-tracking magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) method has been employed to measure velocity profiles for oscillatory flow with and without a steady flow component as well as pulsatile flow in an axisymmetric tube model. A range of flow conditions within normal physiological limits was tested. The imaged velocity profiles were observed to be generally in accord with theoretical predictions. Instantaneous flow rates calculated from the MR images agreed well with those assessed using an ultrasonic flowmeter. Because MRI is noninvasive and poses few risks to subjects, this technique is potentially useful for studying vascular hemodynamics in vivo.

Blood Flow Velocity↗

PubMed1990

Velocity profiles in stenosed models using magnetic resonance imaging.

A time-of-flight MRI velocity measurement technique is evaluated against corresponding LDV measurements in a constriction tube model over a range of physiologic flow conditions. Results from this study show that MR displacement images can: (1) be obtained within both laminar and turbulent jets (maximum stenotic Re approximately equal to 4,200); (2) measure mean jet velocities up to 172 cm/s, and (3) detect low forward and reverse velocity regions near the tube wall just downstream of the stenosis (0 less than or equal to L/D less than or equal to 2). Regions between the jet termination point and reestablishment of laminar flow (Re greater than 1,500, greater than 1,000 and greater than 110 downstream of 40, 60 and 80% stenosis, respectively) cannot presently be detected by this technique.

Blood Flow Velocity↗

PubMed1990

In vivo characterization of infusion edema by magnetic resonance imaging.

In vivo measurements of relaxation time profiles were carried out in cats using the infusion model of edema. These profiles were correlated with independent gravimetric measurements of brain water. The results indicated that in vivo determinations of water content by MRI are possible with high spatial resolution.

Animals↗

PubMed1988

Velocity profiles in stenosed tube models using magnetic resonance imaging.

A time-of-flight MRI velocity measurement technique is evaluated against corresponding LDV measurements in a constriction tube model over a range of physiologic flow conditions. Results from this study show that MR displacement images can: 1) be obtained within both laminar and turbulent jets (maximum stenotic Re approximately equal to 4,200), 2) measure mean jet velocities up to 172 cm/s, and, 3) detect low forward and reverse stenosis (0 less than or equal to L/D less than or equal to 2). Regions between the jet termination point and re-establishment of laminar flow (Re greater than or equal to 1500, greater than or equal to 1000, and greater than or equal to 110 downstream of 40, 60, and 80 percent stenosis, respectively) cannot presently be detected by this technique.

Blood Flow Velocity↗

PubMed1987

An MRI phantom material for quantitative relaxometry.

Most phantom media in current use exhibit T1 relaxation times that are significantly dependent on both temperature and operating frequency. This can introduce undesirable variability into relaxation measurements due to temperature fluctuations, and complicates direct comparison of imagers operating at different magnetic field strengths. Our investigations of a nickel-doped agarose gel system have demonstrated near independence of the proton relaxation rates to a wide range of temperatures and frequencies. We therefore propose the adoption of Ni2+ as a relaxation modifier for phantom materials used as relaxometry standards.

Copper↗

PubMedDate not supplied

MR imaging of model fluid velocity profiles.

A projection MR technique for imaging the velocity profiles of moving fluids has been applied to various steady flow models designed to simulate a variety of flow conditions. From such profiles can be readily deduced peak velocities, volume flow rates, information concerning the degree of flow development, features such as flow separation, and estimates shear stresses at the vessel wall.

Blood Flow Velocity↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Quantitative phase-velocity MR imaging of in-plane laminar flow: effect of fluid velocity, vessel diameter, and slice thickness.

Quantitative MR phase imaging is frequently used to measure spin velocities. A potential difficulty may arise, however, when in-plane phase images are acquired of a vessel carrying laminar flow, for which the fluid velocity profile is parabolic. In that case, depending on the flow velocity (v), the vessel diameter (D), and the chosen MR slice thickness (ST), a spin velocity gradient will be present to some extent within each intraluminal voxel. The resulting intravoxel phase dispersion may be expected to affect the net pixel phase value, and hence compromise the assumed linear correlation between phase shift and velocity. In this study, the effects of alterations of v, D, and ST on the apparent image phase are investigated for the case of laminar flow directed parallel to the sequence read gradient. A theoretical model is developed and the conclusions experimentally tested using a flow phantom. The data demonstrate that when quantitating inplane phase-flow images, significant velocity underestimations may occur when the net flow-induced phase shifts are small and the MR slice thickness is an appreciable fraction of the vessel diameter.

Humans↗