To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu

Title: Imaging Technology Offers Noninvasive Option for Monitoring Pulmonary Inflammation in Cystic Fibrosis Patients: Presented at ATS

"Imaging Technology Offers Noninvasive Option for Monitoring Pulmonary Inflammation in Cystic Fibrosis Patients: Presented at ATS"

By Peggy Peck SEATTLE, WA -- May 26, 2003 -- Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) imaging may provide a noninvasive alternative to bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) for evaluation of disease activity in patients with cystic fibrosis. This finding was reported here on May 19th at the American Thoracic Society International Conference. Data from a small feasibility study of seven patients with stable cystic fibrosis was presented by a team of pediatric critical care specialists and radiologists, including Daniel B. Rosenbluth, MD, associate professor of medicine and pediatrics, Washington University, in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Dr. Rosenbluth noted that the only current option for evaluation of pulmonary inflammation is BAL, a method that often does not achieve good sampling. An alternative approach is forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1), but this method lacks both sensitivity and specificity. By comparison, PET has demonstrated some utility for detecting and monitoring acute neutrophilic inflammation. Seven stable cystic fibrosis patients aged 20 to 50 were recruited for the study. FDG (~10 mCi) was administered intravenously, followed by 60 minutes of dynamic image acquisition. The researchers used both compartmental modeling and Patlak graphical analysis to calculate the influx constant (Ki) -- a measure of net FDG uptake in tissue. To calculate the rate of FEV1 decline, they plotted the calendar year's best FEV1 readings versus patient age, and then applied linear regression to the last years of data. The mean Ki for all lung regions was 11x10-4 min-1 (normal range: 3-8x10-4 min-1), and this correlated well with FEV1 rate of decline and with mean neutrophil counts from BAL of 6.3x103 cells/mm3. This study was funded by the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. [Study title: Evaluating Pulmonary Inflammation with Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) and Positron Emission Tomography (PET) in Patients with Cystic Fibrosis (CF). Abstract 814]

Copyright © 2009 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content.