Increased pulmonary blood volume variation in patients with heart failure compared to healthy controls; a non-invasive, quantitative measure of heart failure

Variation of the blood content of the pulmonary vascular bed during a heartbeat can be quantified by pulmonary blood volume variation (PBVV) using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The aim was to evaluate if PBVV differs in patients with heart failure compared to healthy controls and investigate the mechanisms behind the PBVV. Forty-six patients and 10 controls underwent MRI. PBVV was calculated from blood flow measurements in the main pulmonary artery and a pulmonary vein, defined as the maximum difference in cumulative PBV over one heartbeat. PBVV was indexed to stroke volume (SV) in the main pulmonary artery (PBVVSV). Patients displayed higher PBVVSV than controls (58±14% vs 43±7%, p<0.001). The change in PBVVSV could be explained by left ventricular (LV) longitudinal contribution to SV (R2=0.15, p=0.02) and the phase shift between in- and outflow (R2=0.31, p