Abstract #4115

Short- And Long-Time-Scale Hyperpolarized 3He Diffusion MRI in Healthy, Second-Hand Smoking, COPD and Asthma Subjects

Chengbo Wang¹, John P. Mugler, III², Eduard E. De Lange², G Wilson Miller², Talissa A. Altes²

¹Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Nottingham Ningbo China, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China; ²Radiology and Medical Imaging, University of Virginia, CHARLOTTESVLE, VA, United States

Co-registered axial helium-3 short-time-scale (STS) and long-time-scale (LTS) ADC maps were measured in 24 healthy subjects, 34 second-hand smokers, 15 patients with COPD and 14 patients with asthma. Compared with healthy subjects: (1) both STS and LTS ADC were elevated for patients with COPD; (2) STS ADC was elevated while LTS ADC was not for second-hand smokers; and (3) LTS ADC was elevated while STS ADC was not for asthmatics. These findings suggest that STS and LTS ADC are measuring different aspects of the structural changes that occur in the lung with exposure to second-hand smoke and asthma.