Scan-rescan reproducibility of CT densitometric measures of emphysema

D. Chong; E. M. van Rikxoort; H. J. Kim; J. G. Goldin; M. S. Brown

doi:10.1117/12.878240

Translator Disclaimer

9 March 2011 Scan-rescan reproducibility of CT densitometric measures of emphysema

D. Chong, E. M. van Rikxoort, H. J. Kim, J. G. Goldin, M. S. Brown

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 7963, Medical Imaging 2011: Computer-Aided Diagnosis; 796339 (2011) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.878240
Event: SPIE Medical Imaging, 2011, Lake Buena Vista (Orlando), Florida, United States

Abstract

This study investigated the reproducibility of HRCT densitometric measures of emphysema in patients scanned twice one week apart. 24 emphysema patients from a multicenter study were scanned at full inspiration (TLC) and expiration (RV), then again a week later for four scans total. Scans for each patient used the same scanner and protocol, except for tube current in three patients. Lung segmentation with gross airway removal was performed on the scans. Volume, weight, mean lung density (MLD), relative area under -950HU (RA-950), and 15^th percentile (PD-15) were calculated for TLC, and volume and an airtrapping mask (RA-air) between -950 and -850HU for RV. For each measure, absolute differences were computed for each scan pair, and linear regression was performed against volume difference in a subgroup with volume difference <500mL. Two TLC scan pairs were excluded due to segmentation failure. The mean lung volumes were 5802 +/- 1420mL for TLC, 3878 +/- 1077mL for RV. The mean absolute differences were 169mL for TLC volume, 316mL for RV volume, 14.5g for weight, 5.0HU for MLD, 0.66p.p. for RA-950, 2.4HU for PD-15, and 3.1p.p. for RA-air. The <500mL subgroup had 20 scan pairs for TLC and RV. The R² values were 0.8 for weight, 0.60 for MLD, 0.29 for RA-950, 0.31 for PD-15, and 0.64 for RA-air. Our results indicate that considerable variability exists in densitometric measures over one week that cannot be attributed to breathhold or physiology. This has implications for clinical trials relying on these measures to assess emphysema treatment efficacy.

Citation Download Citation

D. Chong, E. M. van Rikxoort, H. J. Kim, J. G. Goldin, and M. S. Brown "Scan-rescan reproducibility of CT densitometric measures of emphysema", Proc. SPIE 7963, Medical Imaging 2011: Computer-Aided Diagnosis, 796339 (9 March 2011); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.878240

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE