MR-IMAGING AND HEART FUNCTION IN PATIENTS PRE-FONTAN AND POST-FONTAN SURGERY

MR imaging allows functional evaluation of the ventricles of the entire heart because it evaluates cardiac anatomy three-dimensionally. Such evaluation is independent of chamber size and shape, and virtually independent of mathematical assumptions. Applying standard measurements of volume and function in children who have undergone multi-staged Fontan operations, we have shown diminished Ventricular volumes and mass, and decreased cardiac indices, in post-Fontan patients. We have also shown that new parameters of function, such as total heart volume and center-of-mass relationships, are inconstant through the multiple surgical stages of the Fontan procedure. These variations may be predictive of ultimate outcome in these complex patients.