Detection of air trapping in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease by low frequency ultrasound

BMC Pulmonary Medicine

Jens M Hohlfeld²  Stefan Uhlig³  Thomas Glaab¹  Dirk Rüter⁴  Steffen Leonhadt⁵  Frank Wolfram⁵  Heike Biller²  Katrin Morenz³ 

[1] Boehringer Ingelheim, Medical Affairs, Respiratory, Binger Straße 173, 55216 Ingelheim, Germany;Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology & Experimental Medicine (ITEM), Department of Clinical Airway Research, Nikolai-Fuchs-Str. 1, 30625 Hannover, Germany;Institute for Pharmacology and Toxicology, Medical Faculty, RWTH Aachen University, Wendlingweg 2, 52074 Aachen, Germany;Institute for Measurement and Sensor Technology, Mülheim University of Applied Science, Wiesenstraße 36, 45473 Mülheim an der Ruhr, Germany;Philips Chair of Medical Information Technology, RWTH Aachen University, Pauwelsstraße 20, 52074 Aachen, Germany

关键词: GOLD;    Diagnosis;    Pulmonary function test;    Bronchodilation;   

Others  :  1172490
DOI  :  10.1186/1471-2466-12-8

 received in 2011-10-07, accepted in 2012-03-16,  发布年份 2012

【 摘 要 】

Background

Spirometry is regarded as the gold standard for the diagnosis of COPD, yet the condition is widely underdiagnosed. Therefore, additional screening methods that are easy to perform and to interpret are needed. Recently, we demonstrated that low frequency ultrasound (LFU) may be helpful for monitoring lung diseases. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether LFU can be used to detect air trapping in COPD. In addition, we evaluated the ability of LFU to detect the effects of short-acting bronchodilator medication.

Methods

Seventeen patients with COPD and 9 healthy subjects were examined by body plethysmography and LFU. Ultrasound frequencies ranging from 1 to 40 kHz were transmitted to the sternum and received at the back during inspiration and expiration. The high pass frequency was determined from the inspiratory and the expiratory signals and their difference termed ΔF. Measurements were repeated after inhalation of salbutamol.

Results

We found significant differences in ΔF between COPD subjects and healthy subjects. These differences were already significant at GOLD stage 1 and increased with the severity of COPD. Sensitivity for detection of GOLD stage 1 was 83% and for GOLD stages worse than 1 it was 91%. Bronchodilator effects could not be detected reliably.

Conclusions

We conclude that low frequency ultrasound is cost-effective, easy to perform and suitable for detecting air trapping. It might be useful in screening for COPD.

Trial Registration

ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT01080924

【 授权许可】

   
2012 Morenz et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

【 图 表 】

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