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MRI Shows Degree of Airway Narrowing in Lungs of Asthma Patients OAK BROOK, Ill -- February 5, 2009 -- Using a special magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique, researchers have determined that the location and degree of airway narrowing in the lungs of asthma sufferers can be markedly persistent over time. The study will be published in the February issue of Radiology. "A considerable number of airways appeared to be consistently narrowed over time," said lead author, Eduard E. de Lange, MD, University of Virginia Health Sciences Center, Charlottesville, Virginia. "This finding was irrespective of disease severity or the use of medication." Researchers used hyperpolarised helium 3 (3He) MRI to visualise areas of airflow obstruction in the lungs called ventilation defects. To perform the imaging test, patients inhaled the helium gas prior to undergoing MRI. In order to measure the changes in the location and size of airway defects over time, researchers performed consecutive 3He MRI studies on 43 asthma patients aged 18 to 40 years. Twenty-six patients underwent 2 imaging studies on the same day (up to 82 minutes apart), and 17 underwent 3He MRI on 3 occasions separated by an average of 51 days. In addition to each 3He MRI exam, patients also underwent spirometry. In the same-day examinations, 75% of the lung defects identified by 3He MRI remained in the same location for both imaging studies. The majority of those defects, or 71%, remained the same size. In the multi-day examinations, 67% of defects were still present in studies that were repeated with a median interval of 31 days. In studies with a median interval of 85 days, 38% of defects remained in the same location. The findings were not affected by disease severity or by use of asthma medication. "Most of the change in overall defect number was caused by variability between patients rather than within patients, indicating that 3He MRI provides a reliable means for visualising airflow impediment within the lungs of patients with asthma," said Dr. de Lange. After an interval of about 3 months, repeat 3He MRI revealed that more than one-third of airway defects were in the same location and approximately one-half of those defects were the same size. "A considerable number of airways appeared to be consistently narrowed over time, which helps us understand that asthma is largely a focal disease of the lung," Dr. de Lange said. SOURCE: Radiological Society of North America E-mail this page to a friend or colleague! To print, use this version