Stunned Myocardium: Functional and Perfusion MR Imaging

Stunned myocardium refers to a fully reversible postischemic mechanical dysfunction that persists after reperfusion despite the absence of irreversible damage [1, 2]. Currently, diagnostic modalities applied to identify reversibly injured myocardium prospectively are based on assessment of regional myocardial function [3], myocardial perfusion [4], metabolism [5], and cell membrane integrity [6]. However, among these techniques used to image reperfused injured myocardium, none have the potential for combined evaluation of abnormal regional perfusion and function. Magnetic resonance (MR) imaging has the capability to simultaneous evaluate regional perfusion and contractile function [7, 8].