Whole body MRI clinical atheroma analysis.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of mortality in the UK and was responsible for over 50,000 premature deaths in 2008. The economic burden of CVD continues to rise, the overall annual cost in the UK is £30bn. The burden of cardiovascular disease is predicted to increase due increased obesity, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes and old age. While about half (48%) of deaths are from coronary disease (CHD) and a quarter (28%) from stroke, the burden of CVD is spread across the different vascular territories within an individual. For instance, 40% of patients with leg arterial disease (PAD) have neck arterial disease with a risk of stroke, or kidney arterial disease, with a risk of high blood pressure and kidney failure, while the majority die of undetected CHD. Identification of the severity and distribution of the burden of CVD in different vascular territories in an individual presenting with cardiovascular symptoms, e.g. leg, at an early stage would be expected to alter patient management and lead to improved patient outcomes. This staging of cardiovascular disease is analogous to the disease staging undertaken in cancer. Whole body cardiovascular MRI (WBCVMR) offers a new, non-invasive, single point, comprehensive cardiovascular disease imaging assessment which, when combined with a new quantitative analysis technique, could provide the necessary assessment of CVD distribution, severity and risk of early mortality. The key research challenge is to develop a robust image processing analytical tool that can quantify disease from the MBCVMR examination.