CONTRIBUTION OF VENTILATION AND PERFUSION LUNG IMAGING TO THE MANAGEMENT OF PATIENTS WITH BRONCHIECTASIS

Sixty patients were studied with ventilation-perfusion (V-P) lung scan s for suspected bronchiectasis. Bronchography showed bronchiectatic ch anges in 51 patients. Lobar and segmental matched defects were seen on V-P scans in 53 patients, of which only 46 were true positives (sensi tivity 90%). V-P lung scans showed the site and extent of bronchiectat ic lesions; 48 (72.7%) in the left lung and 18 (27.3%) in the right lu ng. Detection of associated chronic obstructive airway disease by V-P scans in 17 patients had prognostic value in postsurgery recovery time and improvement of symptoms. This may be a potential new application to the routine use of V-P lung scan in the presurgery work-up of patie nts with bronchiectasis. Our results showed that bronchography should not be performed on patients with preserved lung perfusion.