Abstract
ObjectiveUltrasonographic studies have demonstrated transient reduction in spleen volume in relation to apnea diving. We measured spleen volume under various respiratory conditions by MR imaging to accurately determine the influence of ordinary breath holding on spleen volumetry.Materials and MethodsTwelve healthy adult volunteers were examined. Contiguous MR images of the spleen were acquired during free breathing and during respiratory manipulations, including breath holding at the end of normal expiration, breath holding at deep inspiration, and the valsalva maneuver, and spleen volume was measured from each image set based on the sum-of-areas method. Acquisition during free breathing was performed with respiratory triggering. The duration of each respiratory manipulation was 30 s, and five sets of MR images were acquired serially during each manipulation.ResultsBaseline spleen volume before respiratory manipulation was 173.0 ± 79.7 mL, and the coefficient of variance for two baseline measures was 1.4% ± 1.6%, suggesting excellent repeatability. Spleen volume decreased significantly just after the commencement of respiratory manipulation, remained constant during the manipulation, and returned to the control value 2 min after the cessation of the manipulation, irrespective of manipulation type. The percentages of volume reduction were 10.2% ± 2.9%, 10.2% ± 3.5%, and 13.3% ± 5.7% during expiration breath holding, deep-inspiration breath holding, and the valsalva maneuver, respectively, and these values did not differ significantly.ConclusionsSpleen volume is reduced during short breath-hold apnea in healthy adults. Physiological responses of the spleen to respiratory manipulations should be considered in the measurement and interpretation of spleen volume.
Highlights
Occurs in various disorders, such as hematological diseases, malignant neoplasms, liver diseases, infection, and autoimmune disorders
Reduction in spleen volume was observed during the respiratory manipulation, and the degree and time course of the volume change were similar irrespective of manipulation type (Figure 4)
The percentages of volume reduction were 10.2% ± 2.9%, 10.2% ± 3.5%(range, 3.5%–15.8%), and 13.3% ± 5.7%(range, 3.4%–23.5%) during expiration breath holding, deep-inspiration breath holding, and the Valsalva maneuver, respectively, and these values did not differ significantly
Summary
Occurs in various disorders, such as hematological diseases, malignant neoplasms, liver diseases, infection, and autoimmune disorders. Spleen size can be evaluated by ultrasonography [1,2,3,4], computed tomography (CT) [5,6,7,8], magnetic resonance (MR) imaging [9,10,11,12,13], or single-photon emission CT [14,15] Among these modalities, ultrasonographic measurement of spleen length is the most popular because of its wide availability and convenience, and spleen volume may be calculated from three dimensions using a predefined formula [4]. CT and MR imaging permit the estimation of organ volume from thin, contiguous slices covering the organ using the sum-of-areas technique [5,16] These methods are less operator dependent than ultrasonography and provide accurate, reproducible measures of organ volume
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
