Brand P, Rieger C, Beinert T, Heyder J
GSF-Forschungszentrum für Umwelt und Gesundheit, Institut für Inhalationsbilogie, Oberschleissheim, Germany.
Eur Respir J. 1995 Oct;8(10):1639-46. doi: 10.1183/09031936.95.08101639.
Monodisperse aerosol particles can be used to non-invasively probe intrapulmonary airspace dimensions. In this study, the aerosol-derived airway morphometry technique was used to study airspace dimensions in 79 healthy subjects, in order to assess reference data for the future clinical application of aerosol-derived airway morphometry, and to investigate the effect of lung inflation, anthropometric, and lung function parameters on aerosol-derived airway morphometry. Intrapulmonary airspace dimensions were assessed by measuring the deposition of monodisperse, hydrophobic submicron aerosol particles during breathholding. Additionally, measurements of spirometric and body plethysmographic lung function were performed. Airspace dimensions were in good agreement with morphometric lung data. Airspace dimensions increased with increasing lung inflation. Interindividual variation of airspace dimensions was lowest in the lung periphery, at high levels of lung inflation, and when the volumetric lung depth was normalized to the end-inspiratory lung volume. Analysis of variance showed an increase of airspace dimensions with age. The results of this study indicate that aerosol-derived airway morphometry is dependent on the level of lung inflation and the age of the subject. These results suggest that in contrast to conventional lung function techniques, aerosol-derived airway morphometry might be a powerful tool for the detection of small changes in peripheral airway geometry.
单分散气溶胶颗粒可用于非侵入性探测肺内气腔尺寸。在本研究中，采用气溶胶衍生气道形态测量技术对79名健康受试者的气腔尺寸进行研究，以评估气溶胶衍生气道形态测量在未来临床应用中的参考数据，并研究肺膨胀、人体测量学和肺功能参数对气溶胶衍生气道形态测量的影响。通过测量屏气期间单分散、疏水性亚微米气溶胶颗粒的沉积来评估肺内气腔尺寸。此外，还进行了肺活量测定和体容积描记法肺功能测量。气腔尺寸与形态学肺数据高度一致。气腔尺寸随肺膨胀程度增加而增大。在肺周边、高肺膨胀水平以及将肺容积深度标准化为吸气末肺容积时，气腔尺寸的个体间差异最小。方差分析显示气腔尺寸随年龄增长而增加。本研究结果表明，气溶胶衍生气道形态测量取决于肺膨胀水平和受试者年龄。这些结果表明，与传统肺功能技术不同，气溶胶衍生气道形态测量可能是检测外周气道几何形状微小变化的有力工具。
