A Pilot Trial on Pulmonary Emphysema Quantification and Perfusion Mapping in a Single-Step Using Contrast-Enhanced Dual-Energy Computed Tomography.

The study aimed to assess whether contrast-enhanced dual-energy computed tomography angiography (DECTA) can be used for simultaneous evaluation of emphysema quantification and regional perfusion. The study evaluated 27 patients with pulmonary emphysema, and the results showed moderate correlations between quantitative parameters on virtual non-contrast (VNC) images and pulmonary function test data, and also moderate correlations between the severity of parenchymal destruction from VNC images and perfusion status from iodine maps. The study demonstrated that contrast-enhanced DECTA can be used for emphysema quantification and regional perfusion evaluation using VNC images and iodine maps, simultaneously. AVIEW software was used for lung segmentation and generation of the VNC color-coded map images.