Magnetic Resonance Imaging May Be a Valuable Radiation-Free Technique for Lung Pathologies in Patients with Primary Immunodeficiency

• Published in: Journal of clinical immunology Vol. 36; no. 1; pp. 66 - 72
• Main Authors: Arslan, Sevket, Poyraz, Necdet, Ucar, Ramazan, Yesildag, Mihrican, Yesildag, Ahmet, Caliskaner, Ahmet Zafer
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01.01.2016; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Adult; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Bronchiectasis - complications; Bronchiectasis - diagnosis; Female; Humans; Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes - complications; Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes - diagnosis; Immunology; Infectious Diseases; Internal Medicine; Lung - diagnostic imaging; Lung - pathology; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Medical Microbiology; Middle Aged; Mucus - metabolism; Original Article; Radiation; Radiation Tolerance; Radionuclide Imaging; Tomography, X-Ray Computed; Young Adult; lung imaging; magnetic resonance imaging; computerized tomography; radiosensitivity; Primary immunodeficiency
• ISSN: 0271-9142; 1573-2592
• DOI: 10.1007/s10875-015-0227-4

Purpose In some primary immunodeficiency (PID) patients, especially in the subgroup with common variable immunodeficiency (CVID), radiosensitivity is a concern and avoidance of repeated radiation exposure has been recommended. To investigate the use of lung Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) instead of Computed Tomography (CT) for the diagnosis and follow-up of various lesions in the lung parenchyma and airways, especially in PID patients in whom x-ray exposure should be limited. Methods The study enrolled 23 patients with PID who underwent thorax CT within the last 3 months and/or who will undergo initial radiological assessment. Lung MRI was performed in all patients to compare the pulmonary findings with CT images. Results MRI performance was weaker at detecting bronchiectasis extension, and a low concordance was found between MRI and CT in the assessment of the number of bronchial generations. CT better identified peripheral airway abnormalities, while CT and MRI gave similar results for detecting the presence and extension of consolidation, bullae, mucus plugging, bronchial wall thickening, bronchiectasis severity and nodules. Conclusions Despite the low spatial resolution, higher cost, and low availability, we suggest MRI as a possible radiation-free alternative to CT in selected patients with PID.