Chest computed tomography findings in bronchopulmonary dysplasia and correlation with lung function

Abstract

Objective: With changes in predominant pathogenic factors in the new form of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), a different pattern of computed tomography (CT) findings may be expected. The aim of this study is to describe CT findings in BPD infants and to correlate them to lung function tests (LFT) abnormalities.

Patients and Design: We retrospectively reviewed 41 very low birthweight infants with BPD, who were refered for pulmonary investigations between 10 and 20 months after birth because of persistent respiratory symptoms, and underwent CT and lung function tests (LFT).

Results: None of the infants had normal CT findings. The most frequent abnormalities were hyperlucent areas (88%), linear opacities (94%), and triangular subpleural opacities (71%). Bronchiectasis was never observed. None CT abnormalities were found to correlate to VmaxFRC values. In contrast, increased number of subpleural opacities and limited linear opacities were associated to low FRC values and longer duration of neonatal oxygen exposure. The numbers of triangular subpleural opacities also correlated with duration of mechanical ventilation.

Conclusions: Despite advances in neonatal care, many CT findings are similar to those previously observed in the pre-surfactant era, and are still associated to duration of supplemental oxygen and mechanical ventilation. The absence of bronchial involvement was the most striking difference with previous studies.