Healthy adults aged forty years and older exhibited lower main pulmonary artery flow volumes and lower left pulmonary artery wall shear stress magnitude compared to younger individuals in a prospective 4D flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance evaluation.

The prospective study included 57 healthy adult participants who underwent 4D flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging between February and November 2025. The research was designed to assess age- and sex-related changes in pulmonary arterial flow distribution and wall shear stress, providing preliminary reference measurements for healthy adults.

Investigators initially divided the participants into two primary age cohorts, defining group 1 as individuals under 40 years of age and group 2 as those aged 40 years or older. Each age cohort was subsequently subdivided by sex into subgroup A for males and subgroup B for females, creating four distinct analytical subgroups designated as 1A, 1B, 2A, and 2B.

The imaging protocol obtained cardiac cine imaging sequences of the heart across short-axis, two-chamber, three-chamber, and four-chamber views, in addition to dedicated 4D flow sequences. Two radiologists conducted the evaluations to calculate flow volume and wall shear stress parameters for each artery across a cardiac cycle, which were then used to determine the distribution ratio for both pulmonary arteries.

The sequence evaluations revealed that main pulmonary artery flow volume was significantly lower in group 2 than in group 1 at 61.69 ± 11.98 milliliters per cycle versus 69.39 ± 15.80 milliliters per cycle. Additionally, group 1 demonstrated significantly higher wall shear stress magnitude in the left pulmonary artery at 0.15 ± 0.04 Pascals compared to 0.12 ± 0.02 Pascals in group 2 after false discovery rate correction, while no significant differences were observed between sexes.

The authors concluded that 4D flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance enables the noninvasive quantification of pulmonary arterial hemodynamics in healthy adults. By establishing preliminary reference data for both pulmonary arterial flow distribution and wall shear stress, the study documents baseline hemodynamic measurements in healthy individuals. The research team noted that these findings highlight potential age-related differences in pulmonary arterial hemodynamics, demonstrating how 4D flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance can capture variations across different age cohorts.

Subject of Research: Pulmonary arterial hemodynamics across age and sex in healthy adults

Article Title: Sex-specific and age-dependent changes in pulmonary arterial flow distribution and wall shear stress in healthy adults: a 4D flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance study

Article References: Zhang, J., Chen, M., Wang, J., Zhu, J., Ye, A., Guo, B., Li, M., Liu, Y., Li, Q., & Hu, C. (2026). Sex-specific and age-dependent changes in pulmonary arterial flow distribution and wall shear stress in healthy adults: a 4D flow cardiovascular magnetic resonance study. BMC Cardiovascular Disorders. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12872-026-06970-8

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1186/s12872-026-06970-8

Keywords: pulmonary artery, 4D flow CMR, hemodynamics, wall shear stress, cardiovascular magnetic resonance, aging, flow volume, Sex-specific, age-dependent, changes, pulmonary, arterial