Aortic root measurement by cardiovascular magnetic resonance: specification of planes and lines of measurement and corresponding normal values

Cardiovascular magnetic resonance is widely used for aortic root visualization and measurement, but methods still need to be standardized. Our aim was to identify appropriate planes of acquisition and lines of measurement and record corresponding normal values. We studied 120 healthy volunteers, 10 of each gender in each decile between 20 and 80 years, by using a 1.5-T cardiovascular magnetic resonance system. Steady-state free precession cine acquisitions aligned with the left ventricular outflow tract in oblique sagittal and coronal orientations were used to locate 2 sinus planes that transected the root at its widest point in its maximally expanded systolic and at its end diastolic positions. We measured the cusp-cusp and the cusp-commissure dimensions in these cine planes, each as the average of 3. Diastolic cusp-commissure dimensions were smaller than diastolic cusp-cusp dimensions (32.0+/-3.5 mm versus 34.6+/-4.0 mm in men, 28.4+/-2.8 mm versus 30.7+/-3.3 mm in women, P