Magnetic Resonance Flow Measurements of Mesenteric Arteries and Veins and Portal Vein

The diagnosis of chronic gastro-intestinal ischemia (CGI) remains a clinical challenge because this diagnosis is difficult to distinguish by the frequent incidence of chronic abdominal pain and asymptomatic stenosis of the mesenteric arteries1. The standard diagnostic work up includes medical history, anamnesis and physical examination, radiological imaging and a functional test as visible light spectroscopy (VLS)2-4 or tonometry5-7. A multidisciplinary team consisting of a gastroenterologist, a vascular surgeon and an interventional radiologist, all specialized in CGI, discusses all patients which results in an expert based consensus diagnosis. Currently, there is no specific test to diagnose CGI. In literature, Magnetic Resonance (MR) techniques are described by which the flow in the mesenteric vessels is measured pre- and post-prandial in healthy volunteers and CGI patients8-12. The flow in the mesenteric vessels increases post-prandial (hyperemia). However, this increase in post-prandial flow compared to pre-prandial appeared less in CGI patients compared to the healthy volunteers. In some CGI patients, even a decrease of the post-prandial compared to pre-prandial flow was seen. We might be able to distinguish patients with CGI from patients without CGI with MR flow measurements with food stimulation.