Magnetic Resonance Angiography of the Arteries of the Upper and Lower Extremities

Magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) is a powerful tool for assessing upper and lower extremity artery pathologies. In addition to the classic advantages of MRA, such as the absence of radiation and iodinated contrast exposure, it can provide high temporal resolution/dynamic images of the arteries with high soft tissue contrast. Although it has a relatively lower spatial resolution than computed tomography angiography , MRA does not cause blooming artifacts in heavily calcified vessels, which is crucial in small vessel assessment. Although contrast-enhanced MRA is the most preferred technique to assess extremity vascular pathologies, recent advances in non-contrast MRA protocols provide an alternative imaging technique for patients with chronic kidney disease .