• Birger Mensel, Jens-Peter Kühn, Tobias Schneider, Alexander Quadrat, and Katrin Hegenscheid.
• Institute of Diagnostic Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Medicine Greifswald, Ferdinand-Sauerbruch-Straße 1, 17475 Greifswald, Germany. birger.mensel@uni-greifswald.de
• Acad Radiol. 2013 Aug 1; 20 (8): 1004-8.

Rationale And ObjectivesTo assess the validity and reliability of measuring mean aortic wall thickness (MAWT) of the ascending and descending aorta using cine steady-state free precession (SSFP) imaging compared to dark blood (DB) imaging.Materials And MethodsDB and SSFP images of the thoracic aorta acquired at 1.5 T in 50 volunteers (26 women, 24 men; mean age: 50.2 ± 13.1 years) were used. MAWT was calculated on DB and SSFP images for the ascending and descending aorta at the level of the right pulmonary artery by two independent observers. Validity was assessed using Bland-Altman analysis, Passing-Bablok regression, and Spearman correlation. Reliability was assessed using Bland-Altman analysis and intraclass coefficients (ICCs).ResultsThe mean MAWT of the ascending aorta on DB and SSFP images was 1.89 ± 0.21 mm and 1.87 ± 0.20 mm. The measurements for the descending aorta were 1.60 ± 0.22 and 1.63 ± 0.20 mm, respectively. Comparison of DB and SSFP measurements revealed a mean bias of 1.3% (95% limits of agreement (LOA): -7.9, 10.5%) for the ascending and of -2.1% (LOA: -10.5, 6.3%) for the descending aorta. The corresponding regression equation was y = 0.042 + 0.960 × (r = 0.91; P < .0001) and y = 0.118 + 0.939 × (r = 0.95; P < .0001), respectively. Intra- and interobserver variability showed a mean bias of less than 2.0% and LOA of less than ±15.0%. ICCs were greater than or equal to 0.85.ConclusionsMAWT determination in the ascending and descending aorta using cine SSFP sequences is highly valid and reliable compared to DB imaging.Copyright © 2013 AUR. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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