Distinguishing Asthmatics from Healthy Subjects Using Hyperpolarized 3He MRI.

T1-weighted Dynamic Contrast-enhanced MR Imaging of the Lung in Asthma: Semiquantitative Analysis for the Assessment of Contrast Agent Kinetic Characteristics

“…Our receiver operating characteristic analysis suggests a potential diagnostic value of DCE MR imaging readouts in patients with asthma. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curves for SI% max , k washout , and iAUC 60 were comparable or slightly superior to values in the literature for hyperpolarized helium 3 diffusion and ventilation MR imaging measurement in the differentiation of patients with asthma from healthy subjects (28,29). Furthermore, most of the parameters showed uneven distribution in asthmatic lungs, as determined by means of measurement of the local coefficient of variation for each parameter, and the magnitude of uneven distribution increases as airway function worsens.…”