Cine MRI-Derived Radiomics Features of the Cardiac Blood Pool: Periodicity, Specificity, and Reproducibility

Background: Although radiomics features of the left ventricular wall have been used to assess cardiac diseases, radiomics features of the cardiac blood pool have been relatively ignored. Purpose: To test the hypothesis that cine MRI-derived radiomics features of the cardiac blood pool are associated with cardiac function and motion. Study Type: Retrospective. Population: A total of 26 healthy volunteers (51.2 ± 15.6 years; 17 males). Field Strength/Sequence: A 1.5 T/balanced steady-state free precession (bSSFP). Assessment: The radiomics features (107 features in seven classes) of the blood pool of the left/right ventricle/atrium (LV/RV/LA/RA) were extracted on four-chamber cine images (25 phases). Conventional cardiac function parameters (volumes, ejection fraction [EF] and longitudinal strain) were assessed in each cardiac chamber. Intraobserver- and interobserver agreements of radiomics features of all chambers acquired at all phases were assessed, as well as scan–rescan agreement in a subset of 13 volunteers. Statistical Tests: Pearson correlation coefficients (r) were used to assess the associations between peak values of radiomics features and end-diastolic (or maximal) volume, end-systolic (or minimal) volume, EF, and longitudinal strain of corresponding chambers. Good intraobserver, interobserver, and scan–rescan agreements for radiomics features acquired were defined as intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) > 0.7 or coefficient of variation (CoV) < 20%. Results: Most radiomics features of the blood pool varied periodically throughout the cardiac cycle. Peak values of chamber-specific blood pool radiomics features were correlated with traditional cardiac function and motion indices of corresponding chambers (r: 0.4–0.87). Ninety-three (87%), 86 (80%), and 73 (68%) radiomics features demonstrated good intraobserver, interobserver, and scan–rescan reproducibility, respectively. Conclusion: Cine MRI-derived radiomics features within LV/RV/LA/RA are associated with traditional cardiac function and motion indices of corresponding chambers and may have the potential to become novel quantitative imaging biomarkers in cardiovascular medicine. Evidence Level: 3. Technical Efficacy: 1.