Fully Automated Plane Prescription in Cardiac MRI: A Prospective Cohort Study.

Journal: Journal of magnetic resonance imaging : JMRI
Published Date: Nov 30, 2025

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Accurate plane positioning is important for high-quality cardiac MRI images but requires specialized training, limiting accessibility. PURPOSE: To evaluate an automated plane positioning tool and compare it with manual planning. STUDY TYPE: Prospective. POPULATION: Fifty-seven healthy volunteers (28 males; median age 42 years) and 20 consecutive patients (15 males; median age 61 years) scheduled for clinical cardiac MRI. FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE: Steady state free precession cine sequence at 1.5 T. ASSESSMENT: In volunteers, short-axis (SAX), 2-chamber (2CH), 3-chamber (3CH), and 4-chamber (4CH) cine images were acquired using both automated and manual prescription. Two blinded radiologists (5 and 6 years of clinical cardiac MRI experience) rated plane quality on a Likert scale (1 = nondiagnostic to 5 = excellent). Mean plane angle differences between manual and automated prescriptions were calculated. Left and right ventricular end-systolic volume (ESV), end-diastolic volume (EDV), stroke volume (SV), and ejection fraction (EF) were compared. In patients, the number of required manual corrections to automated prescriptions was recorded. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Wilcoxon matched-pairs signed rank tests and Bland-Altman analyses, significance level at p ≤ 0.05. RESULTS: Automated plane positioning was successful in all volunteers. Image plane quality did not differ significantly between automated (mean score 4.64) and manual prescription (4.62, p = 0.812). Mean angle differences were 6.7° ± 4.3° (SAX), 10.3° ± 5.8° (2CH), 8.9° ± 5.1° (3CH), and 8.0° ± 4.8° (4CH). Volumetric parameters showed no significant differences between both planning methods with mean biases being -0.5 mL, p = 0.305 (LVEDV), 0.5 mL, p = 0.683 (LVESV), -1.0 mL, p = 0.168 (LVSV) and 0.4%, and p = 0.215 (LVEF). In patients, 8.8% (7/80) of automatically prescribed planes required minor corrections; 91.2% (73/80) were accepted without adjustments. DATA CONCLUSION: Automated plane positioning for cardiac MRI may provide high-quality images and accurate volumetric assessment comparable to manual planning. EVIDENCE LEVEL: 2. TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 2.

Authors

  • Benjamin Böttcher
    Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Paediatric Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Medical Centre Rostock, Ernst-Heydemann-Str. 6, 18057, Rostock, Germany.
  • Felix G Meinel
    Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, United States; Institute for Clinical Radiology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Hospital, Munich, Germany.
  • Karolin K Deyerberg
    Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Pediatric Radiology and Neuroradiology, Rostock University Medical Center, Rostock, Germany.
  • Lena-Maria Watzke
    Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Pediatric Radiology and Neuroradiology, Rostock University Medical Center, Rostock, Germany.
  • Mathias Manzke
    Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Pediatric Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Medical Centre Rostock, Schillingallee 36, 18057, Rostock, Germany.
  • Margarita Gorodezky
    From the Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Pediatric Radiology and Neuroradiology (A.C.K., L.R., M.M., A.D., M.A.W., F.G.M.), and Department of Cardiology (C.I.L.), Rostock University Medical Center, Schillingallee 36, 18057 Rostock, Germany; GE HealthCare, Munich, Germany (M.G.); GE HealthCare, Menlo Park, Calif (X.Z.); and Department of Radiology, Ludwig-Maximilian University, Munich, Germany (R.L.).
  • Gaspar Delso
    GE Healthcare, Chicago, IL.
  • Antonia Dalmer
    Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Pediatric Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Medical Centre Rostock, Schillingallee 36, 18057, Rostock, Germany.
  • Anne Nerger
    Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Pediatric Radiology and Neuroradiology, Rostock University Medical Center, Rostock, Germany.
  • Marc-André Weber
    Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Paediatric Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Medical Centre Rostock, Ernst-Heydemann-Str. 6, 18057, Rostock, Germany.
  • Ann-Christin Klemenz
    Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, Pediatric Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Medical Centre Rostock, Schillingallee 36, 18057, Rostock, Germany.

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