Abstract
Objectives
The aim of this study was to evaluate the utility of the iterative reconstruction (IR) technique for quantitative bronchial assessment during low-dose computed tomography (CT) as a substitute for standard-dose CT in patients with/without chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Methods
Fifty patients (mean age, 69.2; mean % predicted FEV1, 79.4) underwent standard-dose CT (150mAs) and low-dose CT (25mAs). Except for tube current, the imaging parameters were identical for both protocols. Standard-dose CT was reconstructed using filtered back-projection (FBP), and low-dose CT was reconstructed using IR and FBP. For quantitative bronchial assessment, the wall area percentage (WA%) of the sub-segmental bronchi and the airway luminal volume percentage (LV%) from the main bronchus to the peripheral bronchi were acquired in each dataset. The correlation and agreement of WA% and LV% between standard-dose CT and both low-dose CTs were statistically evaluated.
Results
WA% and LV% between standard-dose CT and both low-dose CTs were significant correlated (r > 0.77, p < 0.00001); however, only the LV% agreement between SD-CT and low-dose CT reconstructed with IR was moderate (concordance correlation coefficient = 0.93); the other agreement was poor (concordance correlation coefficient <0.90).
Conclusions
Quantitative bronchial assessment via low-dose CT has potential as a substitute for standard-dose CT by using IR and airway luminal volumetry techniques.
Key points
• Quantitative bronchial assessment of COPD using low-dose CT is possible.
• Airway luminal volumetry with iterative reconstruction is insusceptible to dose reduction.
• Filtered back-projection is susceptible to the effect of dose reduction.
• Wall area percentage assessment is easily influenced by dose reduction.
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Abbreviations
- COPD:
-
chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- FBP:
-
filtered back-projection
- FEV1:
-
percent predicted forced expiratory volume in 1 s
- IR:
-
iterative reconstruction
- %LAA:
-
percentage of low attenuation area
- LV%:
-
luminal volume percentage
- PFT:
-
pulmonary function test
- WA%:
-
wall area percentage
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Acknowledgments
The authors wish to thank Kazuyuki Kobayashi, M.D., Ph.D., Yasuhiro Funada, M.D., Ph.D., and Yoshikazu Kotani, M.D., Ph.D., Yoshihiro Nishimura, M.D., Ph.D., (Division of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine) and Yoshimasa Maniwa, M.D., Ph.D. (Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine).
This work was supported by grants-in-aid for scientific research from the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (JSTS, KAKENHI; No. 22791197); and Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation.
The scientific guarantor of this publication is Hisanobu Koyama, M.D., Ph.D., Kobe University School of Medicine. The authors of this manuscript declare relationships with the following companies: Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation. No complex statistical methods were necessary for this paper. Institutional Review Board approval was obtained. Written informed consent was obtained from all subjects (patients) in this study. Some study subjects have been previously reported by Nishio et al. [14]. However, the key points of our current study were different as our current study assessed the bronchus whereas the previous study assessed the lung parenchyma. New subjects were included in our current study. Methodology: retrospective, diagnostic or prognostic study, performed at one institution.
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Koyama, H., Ohno, Y., Nishio, M. et al. Iterative reconstruction technique vs filter back projection: utility for quantitative bronchial assessment on low-dose thin-section MDCT in patients with/without chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Eur Radiol 24, 1860–1867 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-014-3207-9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00330-014-3207-9