Early microvascular dysfunction in cerebral small vessel disease is not detectable on 3.0 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging: a longitudinal study in spontaneously hypertensive stroke-prone rats.

Serial MRI at a field strength of 3 T failed to detect the initial microvascular dysfunction and subsequent small perivascular bleeds in SHRSP; only terminal stages of cerebral microangiopathy were reliably detected. Further investigations at higher magnetic field strengths (7 T) using blood- and flow-sensitive sequences are currently underway.