Extravascular lung water in patients with mitral stenosis: relationship to pulmonary capillary wedge pressure and Kerley B lines.

To evaluate the relationship between extravascular lung water, pulmonary capillary wedge pressure, and chest radiographic findings, extravascular lung water (EVLW) was assessed using double indicator-dilution techniques in 34 adult patients with mitral stenosis. Seven patients were studied 6 to 12 months after successful mitral valve replacement. In the 27 preoperative patients, septal lines were found to be indicative of elevated EVLW only in the presence of intravascular congestion. An excellent correlation between EVLW and pulmonary capillary wedge pressure was observed in these patients (r = .81, p less than .001), whereas only a rough correlation between scored radiographic findings and EVLW was observed. Postoperatively, septal lines were invariably associated with normal filling pressures and EVLW. Thus in both preoperative and postoperative mitral stenosis patients, interstitial Kerley B lines are insensitive markers of elevated extravascular lung water in the absence of pulmonary vascular engorgement. This emphasizes the importance of interpreting radiographic findings of extravascular fluid in conjunction with evaluation of the vascular bed in patients with chronic postcapillary hypertension.