Percent emphysema, airflow obstruction, and impaired left ventricular filling.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Very severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease causes cor pulmonale with elevated pulmonary vascular resistance and secondary reductions in left ventricular filling, stroke volume, and cardiac output. We hypothesized that emphysema, as detected on computed tomography (CT), and airflow obstruction are inversely related to left ventricular end-diastolic volume, stroke volume, and cardiac output among persons without very severe lung disease.

Methods

We measured left ventricular structure and function with the use of magnetic resonance imaging in 2816 persons who were 45 to 84 years of age. The extent of emphysema (expressed as percent emphysema) was defined as the percentage of voxels below -910 Hounsfield units in the lung windows on cardiac computed tomographic

SUBMITTER: Barr RG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2887729 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature