It is with pleasure that I write this foreword for the book "Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Coronary Artery Disease", edited by Dr. van der Wall and Dr. de Roos. I am pleased for two reasons. Firstly, as chairman of the Scientific Board of the Interuniversity Cardiology Institute of the Netherlands (ICIN), because ever since the technique became available for use in medicine and biology our Institute has tried and succeeded to promote the introduction and dev- opment of magnetic resonance imaging in cardiology in the Netherlands. ICIN was the first cardiological institute on the European continent to purchase its own nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscope for the study of myocardial metabolism. Secondly, because I have always been infatuated with this noninvasive technique that can produce cardiac images without ionic radiation and at the same time allows for the study of myocardial metabolism as well. And even more so because nuclear magnetic resonance imaging in medicine is one of the shining examples of medical progress as a result of breakthrough discoveries in physics and chemistry.

Inhalt

1. Magnetic resonance imaging: A new approach for evaluating coronary artery disease?.- 2. Coronary circulation.- 3. Magnetic resonance imaging and quantitation of blood flow.- 4. Imaging strategy in cardiac magnetic resonance imaging.- 5. MRI determination of cardiac dimensions.- 6. Visualization of the coronary arteries.- 7. Magnetic resonance imaging of myocardial ischemia and infarction in experimental animal models.- 8. Magnetic resonance imaging in acute myocardial infarction.- 9. Assesment of myocardial infarction by magnetic resonance imaging with the aid of contrast agents.- 10. MRI: Evaluation of ventricular function in coronary artery disease.- 11. Stress magnetic resonance imaging in coronary artery disease.- 12. Visualization of coronary artery bypasses with MRI.- 13. Recent advances of magnetic resonance spectroscopy in myocardial ischemia.