METHOD FOR EXTRACTING DEFORMATIONS FROM VELOCITY-ENCODED MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGES OF THE HEART

An MRI scan is conducted in which velocity encoded NMR data is acquired for a slice through the heart. Velocity images and magnitude images are reconstructed at multiple cardiac phases and masks are formed using the magnitude images. The masks are applied to the velocity images to isolate the left ventricle, and rigid body motion is calculated and subtracted from the masked velocity images to indicate deformation of the left ventricle.