The relationship between ventilatory lung motion and pulmonary perfusion shown by ventilatory lung motion imaging

Abstract

Using ventilatory lung motion imaging, which was obtained from two perfusion lung scintigrams with 99mTc-macroaggregated albumin taken in maximal inspiration and maximal expiration, the lung motion [E-I)/I) of the each unilateral lung was studied in various cardiopulmonary diseases. The sum of (E-I)/I(+) of the unilateral lung showed a decrease in the diseased lung of localized pleuropulmonary diseases, including primary lung cancer and pleural thickening, and in both lungs in cases of heart diseases, diffuse pulmonary diseases including diffuse interstitial pneumonia and diffuse panbronchiolitis. The sum of (E-I)/I(+) of the both lungs, which correlated with vital capacity and PaO2, showed a decrease in diffuse interstitial pneumonia, pulmonary emphysema, diffuse panbronchiolitis, primary lung cancer, pleural diseases and so on. (E-I)/I(+), correlated with pulmonary perfusion (n = 49, r = 0.51, p less than 0.001), but not a few cases showed mismatch, which was observed in primary lung cancer, pleural diseases, pulmonary emphysema, diffuse panbronchiolitis and so on. (E-I)/I(+) better correlated with pulmonary ventilation by ventilation scintigraphy with 81mKr or 133Xe (n = 49, r = 0.61, p less than 0.001) than pulmonary perfusion. The ventilatory lung motion imaging, which demonstrates the motion of the intra-pulmonary areas and lung edges, appears useful for estimating pulmonary ventilation of the perfused area as well as pulmonary perfusion.