Did you know that there are 60,000 miles of blood vessels in the body? With that number it can be a little daunting for a physician to diagnose a vascular health issue. Fortunately, magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) can greatly assist your physician in understanding the health of your veins and arteries. An MRA shows how your blood flows through your blood vessels and helps determine if your veins may be blocked, narrowing, bulging, or ruptured. The word angio actually refers to the channel or vessel.

What makes MRAs special is that the images show only the vessels themselves. Tissue, muscle, and skin do not show up on the image. These clear and clutter-free images are used to help detect stroke and many health issues related to the brain, kidneys, pelvis, lungs, heart, neck, and arms and legs.

While MRIs are used to image tissue and muscle at a microscopic level, MRAs show blood flow in exquisite detail. The images below illustrate the difference between the two types of diagnostic scans.

	MRA	MRI
Full body scan
Brain scan
Renal Scan

What are the uses of MRA?

• Identify weakened or damaged blood vessels in the aorta that can lead to aneurysms (ruptures).
• Detect disease in the carotid artery of the neck, which may limit blood flow to the brain and cause a stroke.
• Identify small aneurysms or vascular malformations in the brain.
• Detect disease that has narrowed the arteries to the legs.
• Assist in the diagnosis of renal arterial disease, liver damage, and kidney malfunction.
• Guide surgeons in making repairs to diseased blood vessels, such as implanting or evaluating a stent.
• Evaluate the details of arteries feeding a tumor prior to surgery.
• Screen individuals for arterial disease, especially patients with a family history of arterial disease or disorders.

What are the advantages of MRA?

• MRA is a noninvasive imaging technique that does not involve exposure to radiation.
• An MRA is less expensive than a traditional catheter angiogram.
• Detailed images of blood vessels and blood flow are obtained without having to insert a catheter into a vein, so there is no risk of damaging an artery.
• The MRA procedure takes less time than a traditional catheter angiogram.
• An MRA may eliminate the need for surgery. If surgery remains necessary, it can be performed more accurately.

What is the basic procedure?

Using the same high-field scanners, the preparation and procedures for an MRA are the same as for an MRI. The physician may even order both types of scans, and they will be completed in consecutive order during the same examination. Typically, a contrast solution called gadolinium, which helps highlight the vessels, is injected intravenously.

To optimize your imaging experience please visit our patient preparation tips web page.

Information for this web page was obtained from the Radiological Society of North America, Inc. (RSNA)

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