We evaluated contrast-enhanced MR angiography (MRA) for the identification of recently ruptured cerebral aneurysms. We studied 23 aneurysms in 18 patients (age range 34-72 years) with aneurysms of the anterior (n = 17) and posterior (n = 6) circulation by comparing 3D time-of-flight (TOF), contrast-enhanced MRA and digital subtraction angiography (DSA). In four of 23 aneurysms, 3D-TOF did not show the lesion. Contrast-enhanced MRA successfully depicted all aneurysms except one. T1 contamination artefacts from subarachnoid or intraparenchymal haemorrhages were evident on the 3D-TOF images in six cases. The artefacts were completely eliminated on the contrast-enhanced MRA images by subtraction of the pre-contrast images. The diagnostic information in patients with subarachnoid haemorrhages (SAHs) provided by contrast-enhanced MRA was comparable to that provided by DSA.