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Advances of magnetic resonance hemodynamics in symptomatic intracranial arterial stenosis
SHI Wenlu  WANG Tianle  ZHU Li 

Cite this article as: SHI W L, WANG T L, ZHU L. Advances of magnetic resonance hemodynamics in symptomatic intracranial arterial stenosis[J]. Chin J Magn Reson Imaging, 2026, 17(4): 142-148. DOI:10.12015/issn.1674-8034.2026.04.020.


[Abstract] Patients with symptomatic intracranial atherosclerotic stenosis (sICAS) are at a high risk of recurrent cerebral ischemic events, and elucidating the mechanisms underlying stroke occurrence and progression is of great importance for disease assessment and prognostic evaluation. Traditional assessment strategies based solely on the degree of anatomical stenosis fail to comprehensively reflect the true functional impact of the lesion, whereas hemodynamic abnormalities play a pivotal role in the occurrence, progression, and recurrence of stroke. In recent years, techniques such as high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (HR-MRI) and four-dimensional flow magnetic resonance imaging (4D Flow MRI) have enabled noninvasive and quantitative evaluation of intracranial arterial hemodynamics from multiple dimensions, including vessel wall characteristics, flow patterns, and energy loss. Moreover, integration with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies has facilitated deeper insights into distinct stroke mechanisms and improved the accuracy of risk stratification. Currently, research on hemodynamics in sICAS still faces limitations in methodological standardization, multimodal integration, and clinical translation. This review aims to summarize the major factors influencing hemodynamics in sICAS, magnetic resonance-based assessment methods, and their associations with stroke-related risks. In addition, it analyzes the existing research limitations and proposes future directions, providing a reference for the application of magnetic resonance-based hemodynamic evaluation in stroke mechanism research and clinical translation.
[Keywords] intracranial atherosclerosis；hemodynamics；computational fluid dynamics；four-dimensional flow magnetic resonance imaging；magnetic resonance imaging

SHI Wenlu   WANG Tianle   ZHU Li*  

Department of Radiology, Affiliated Nantong Clinical College of Nantong University, Nantong First People's Hospital, Nantong 226600, China

Corresponding author: ZHU L, E-mail: ntyyyxkzhuli@163.com

Conflicts of interest   None.

Received  2026-01-26
Accepted  2026-04-10
DOI: 10.12015/issn.1674-8034.2026.04.020
Cite this article as: SHI W L, WANG T L, ZHU L. Advances of magnetic resonance hemodynamics in symptomatic intracranial arterial stenosis[J]. Chin J Magn Reson Imaging, 2026, 17(4): 142-148. DOI:10.12015/issn.1674-8034.2026.04.020.

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