ABSTRACT
Introduction Fetal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was initially reported in 1983, and its clinical utility as an adjunct to ultrasound, particularly for the assessment of central nervous system malformations and for the evaluation of invasive disorders of the placenta, is now well established. The increasing variety of quantitative MRI techniques being developed has prompted a number of groups to investigate the potential of this imaging modality for assessing fetal cardiovascular and placental pathophysiology. Unlike ultrasound, MRI can provide direct information about fetal oxygenation and perfusion, while diffusion-weighted imaging and magnetic resonance spectroscopy offer the possibility of assessing tissue microstructure and metabolism. Pre-and postnatal brain imaging incorporating these quantitative techniques has been used to gauge the impact of fetal congenital heart disease (CHD) and intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) on in utero brain development. However, these applications remain largely within the realms of research, and there is currently limited use of MRI in clinical fetal cardiology practice. In this chapter, presented are some potential MRI approaches to examining the fetal cardiovascular and central nervous systems and reviewed are observations made about normal fetal circulatory physiology using MRI. Chapter 16 covers some of the findings reported in pregnancies affected by fetal cardiovascular disorders.
