Abstract:
Background: Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is the most common chronic lung disease in newborns and premature infants. Low
radiation dose high-resolution chest computed tomography (CT) holds great potential for providing valuable information related to the
severity of BPD in premature infants and guiding the treatment strategy. The study aimed to evaluate the chest CT findings in premature
infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD).
Material and methods: The study included a total of 32 premature infants with BPD who underwent a high-resolution chest CT between
January 2015 and February 2018. Their CT findings were analyzed and diagnostic value evaluated.
Results: The 3 most frequent CT findings included: mosaic lung parenchymal pattern – noted in 93.8% (30/32) patients, bronchial wall
thickening – noted in 90.6% (29/32) patients and subpleural triangular/linear opacities – noted in 87.5% (28/32) patients. The diagnostic
accuracy of each CT finding was as follows: mosaic lung parenchymal pattern – 89.13% (95% CI from 76.43% to 96.38%), bronchial wall
thickening – 85.42% (95% CI from 72.24% to 93.93%), subpleural triangular/linear opacities – 81.25% (95% CI from 69.54% to 89.92%).
Conclusions: Low radiation dose high-resolution chest computed tomography provided valuable diagnostic information in premature
infants with BPD. The most accurate diagnostic finding was the mosaic lung parenchymal pattern, which was frequently associated with
bronchial wall thickening and subpleural triangular/linear opacities.
Description:
Institute for Mother and Child Health Care, Department of Radiology and Imaging
Nicolae Testemitsanu State University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Chisinau, the Republic of Moldova, The IVth Congress of Radiology and Medical Imaging of the Republic of Moldova with international participation, Chisinau, May 31 – June 2, 2018