Ventilation Heterogeneity in Never-smokers and COPD: Comparison of Pulmonary Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging with the Poorly Communicating Fraction Derived From Plethysmography

摘要

Rationale and Objectives: Pulmonary functional magnetic resonance imaging provides a way to quantify ventilation and its heterogeneity a hallmark finding in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Unfortunately, the etiology and physiological meaning of ventilation defects and their relationship to pulmonary function and symptoms in COPD are not well understood. Another biomarker of ventilation heterogeneity is provided by the "poorly communicating fraction" (PCF), and is calculated as the ratio of total lung capacity to alveolar volume made using whole-body plethysmography. Our objective was to compare ventilation heterogeneity using hyperpolarized He-3 magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and PCF measurements in elderly never-smokers and in ex-smokers with COPD.