Abstract
Patients with active interstitial lung disease (ILD) are often treated with high-dose corticosteroids, although such therapy is not universally effective and has significant risks. Clinicians have utilized various ancillary diagnostic techniques to help with difficult treatment decisions. Since magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has the theoretic and experimental potential of differentiating various stages of ILD, we prospectively studied 34 adult patients in a 0.15 Tesla resistive magnet body imager. The most severely affected patients, who were thought to warrant a steroid trial, had the greatest MRI image intensity, and dramatic improvement was seen following successful treatment. Qualitative MRI data were as useful as any other ancillary diagnostic technique (radiographic, physiologic, scintigraphic) in predicting clinical course. Computer-generated relaxation times were not sufficiently precise to differentiate active from inactive disease. Although limited by availability and cost, MRI appears to be a useful ancillary diagnostic technique in ILD patients facing immunomodulating therapy.
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.
