Skip to main content
SCMR 29th Annual Scientific Sessions Main banner
Final Program


Program-At-A-Glance

Rapid Fire Session

Session: Rapid Fire Session 4: <1.5 and Lung Water (Monitor 1)

Emerging Role of Low-Field 0.55T Cardiovascular MRI in Valvular Heart Disease

Friday, February 6, 2026
3:59 PM - 4:06 PM  
Location: Galapagos / Aruba / Ilhabela (2nd Lower Level)
Background: Valvular heart disease represents a growing global health burden (1). Recent advances in surgical and transcatheter interventions have increased the need for comprehensive imaging to guide diagnosis, monitoring and treatment (2–4). Cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) is recognised as a key modality not only for identifying valve morphology and disease severity, but also the haemodynamic consequences of valvular dysfunction(2,4,5).


Low-field CMR, using a commercially available 0.55T ultra-wide bore scanner, has recently been shown to be feasible, offering specific advantages including improved field homogeneity and fewer limitations related to specific absorption rates (6–8). The ultra-wide bore further offers accessibility, making CMR a non-invasive option for patients with poor acoustic windows, including those with a higher BMI (8). These features lend value to the imaging of valvular heart disease.


We aim to compare quantitative volumetric and flow measurements between 0.55T and 1.5T CMR, and to evaluate the qualitative image quality of valvular anatomy across the two systems.

Methods: Patients with valvular heart disease who underwent a clinical CMR at 1.5T (MAGNETOM Sola, Siemens Healthineers, Forchheim, Germany) were offered an additional focused, non-contrast scan at 0.55T (MAGNETOM FreeMax, Siemens Healthineers, Forchheim Germany). At 0.55T, ECG triggering used an external device (Expression MR400, Philips, Best, The Netherlands. Cine imaging was done using compressed-sensing bSSFP research sequences and breath-held, GRAPPA-accelerated research sequences were used for through-plane aortic and pulmonary flow imaging at 0.55T. Images were analysed with cvi42 (Circle Cardiovascular Imaging Inc., Canada), without background phase offset correction as per routine clinical practice.

Results: We scanned 10 patients (7 men, 3 women) - 8 with native valvular pathology and 2 with prosthetic aortic valve replacements. Native disease included a mix of stenotic and regurgitant lesions including patients with complex multi-valvular involvement. Sample comparative imaging as included in Figure 1. Preliminary results from this ongoing study indicate good agreement in volumetric and flow assessments between the 1.5T and 0.55T scanners as outlined by the results (Figure 2), Bland-Altman and scatter plots (Figure 3). Qualitative evaluation by two experienced reviewers of this initial cohort demonstrated superior anatomical assessment of prosthetic valves at 0.55T compared with 1.5T.

Conclusion: From our preliminary study, low-field CMR at 0.55T demonstrates comparable performance to 1.5T across key parameters in valvular heart disease, while offering distinct advantages in select patients. Continued evaluation is warranted to further define its role in this population.

Top row: imaging at 0.55T. Bottom row: corresponding imaging at 1.5T. From left to right: Prosthetic aortic valve (A,E); Severe tricuspid regurgitation (B,F), Aortic stenosis in bicuspid aortic valve (C,D) and Aortic/Pulmonary flow curves (D,H).
Summary of Comparative Results
Bland-Altman and Scatter Plots of Aortic and Pulmonary Forward Flow and Regurgitant Volume