MORPHOMETRY OF EXPERIMENTAL LUNG CONTUSION - AN IMPROVED QUANTITATIVEMETHOD

Alterations of lung tissue following pulmonary contusion are mainly as sessed qualitatively. Quantitative examinations were limited up to now , to investigations in X-ray and computer tomography images, since mor phometry of contused and normal biotic lung tissues seemed to be metho dologically unfeasible. In order to overcome this shortcoming, the lun gs of pigs were examined after unilateral lung contusion. In semithin sections, the thickness distribution of the interstitium and the volum e distribution of the alveolar cavities were studied. Using an image a nalysis system a sequence of detection, erosion and skeletonisation st eps were used to recognize the septal tissue correctly, The percent di stributions were calculated from chord measurements after a sequence o f erosion steps. It turned out that this technically simple procedure enabled highly reliable and valid results to be obtained, concerning t he morphometric analysis of the alterations in the contused, as well a s in the non-injured lungs.