Clinical application ultrafast MRI to the sleep apnea syndrome, 1

To evaluate the site of obstruction within upper airway, we observed the Turbo-fast low angle shot (FLASH) imaging, in 10 patients with sleep apnea syndrome (SAS) during wakefulness and sleep. After intravenous injection of Gd-DTPA (0.1 mmol/kg), sequential images of pharyngeal portion were obtained in midline sagittal section. An imaging protocol was 1.13s per image with a 1s delay between images, for a total of 30s. Then sequential images were displayed in a cine on C. R. T.. In eight patients, upper airway obstructions were present during sleep, while narrowings were present in four cases during awake. The sites of obstruction were located at the velopharynx exclusively in three cases, velopharynx plus glosspharynx in three cases, velopharynx plus glosspharynx in one case. Velopharynx plus hypopharynx in one case, respectively. It was concluded that ultrafast MRI had an important role in evaluating the sites of obstruction within upper airway in patients with SAS. (author)