The development of symptomatic heart failure is frequently preceded by a pre-clinical period
of structural remodeling in the heart. The remodeling process driving this transition,
however, remains poorly understood. The investigators hypothesize that imaging the diffusion
of water in the heart with MRI will allow its microstructure to be resolved. The
investigators further hypothesize that the characterization of microstructural changes in the
heart will help elucidate the pathogenesis of heart failure and the transition from a
compensated to a decompensated state. Patients with recent myocardial infarcts and left
ventricular hypertrophy, who are at risk for the development of heart failure, will be
enrolled. The participants will undergo serial diffusion tensor MRI (DTI) imaging of the
heart to characterize changes in myocardial microstructure over time.