Role of multidetector computed tomography in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease patients

Abstract

ObjectiveTo assess the role of multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).BackgroundThe use of MDCT in COPD has evolved over the last decades and has provided new insights into the pathophysiology of COPD.Patients and methodsThis was a prospective study conducted on 30 patients who were clinically suspected of COPD and were referred for further assessment by MDCT of the chest.ResultsUsing MDCT, COPD patients were classified phenotypically into airway dominant, emphysema dominant, and mixed representing 50, 30, and 20%, respectively. We reported that MDCT is significantly able to differentiate between the three phenotypes. There were significant positive correlations between pulmonary function tests and upper, middle, and lower lobes of the left lung densities while no correlation was found between pulmonary function tests and lung density of any lobes of the right lung. We found a statistically significant association between lung density and COPD phenotype (P < 0.001). There was statistically significant difference between airway phenotype and both emphysema (P = 0.0002) and mixed (P = 0.026) phenotypes as regards lung density. However, there was no statistically significant difference between emphysema phenotype and mixed phenotype regarding lung density.ConclusionMDCT is a major noninvasive tool that can precisely detect the location and extent of lung pathology in COPD patients.