Penny Louise Hubbard1,2,
Geoff J. M. Parker1,2, Dave Singh3, Eva Bondesson4,
Lars E. Olsson5, Lars Wigstrm5, Simon S. Young6,
Josephine H. Naish1,2
1Imaging
Sciences & Biomedical Engineering, The University of Manchester,
Manchester, United Kingdom; 2The Biomedical Imaging Institute, The
University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom; 3Airway
Pharmacology Group, School of Translational Medicine, University Hospital of
South Manchester Foundation Trust, Manchester, Greater Manchester, United
Kingdom; 4AstraZeneca R & D, Lund, Sweden; 5AstraZeneca
R & D, Mndal, Sweden; 6AstraZeneca R & D, Charnwood,
United Kingdom
We present the results of an oxygen-enhanced (OE-) MRI study in subjects with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and age-matched healthy subjects. Our approach allows quantitative maps of the ventilation-perfusion (V/Q) ratio to be determined using a novel two-compartment physiological model. Dynamic OE-MRI data is acquired whilst the subjects move from breathing medical air to 100% oxygen and back to air. On-air T1 maps reveal higher T1 in healthy subjects and those with COPD. In addition, V/Q maps and histograms reveal significant heterogeneity in COPD and show similarities to work previously published in the SPECT and PET literature.