Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: CT Features of Severe Exacerbation
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: CT Features of Severe Exacerbation
To describe Computed Tomography (CT) features associated with severe exacerbations of Chronic
 Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).
The natural course of COPD is associated with episodes of exacerbation which are clinically
 defined as acute events characterized by a worsening of the patient's respiratory symptoms
 that is beyond normal day-to-day variations and which leads to a change in medication.
 Moreover, these episodes can be classified into mild, moderate, or severe exacerbations,
 following patient's need for medical environment. While the cause of about one-third of
 severe exacerbation episodes cannot be identified, two-thirds are associated with certain
 conditions such as respiratory tract infections (viral or bacterial), air pollution, as well
 as pulmonary embolism (PE), pulmonary edema, cardiac arrhythmia, pneumothorax, or pleural
 effusion. As COPD exacerbations are associated with increased morbidity and mortality, as
 well as with increased healthcare costs, their prevention and treatment are two major
 objectives in COPD management with subsequent requirement for appropriate assessment tools.
 As imaging tool, chest radiography is limited to the detection of pneumonia and pleural
 abnormalities, and only leads to change in managements in a marginal proportion of patients.
 However, while Computed Tomography (CT) scans allows detecting more chest abnormalities, the
 knowledge of CT features at the time of exacerbation is a pre-requisite for determining
 possible role of CT in routine work-up of exacerbation. Nevertheless these features remain
 widely unknown, previous studies having focused on the prevalence of PE. The aim of our study
 was therefore to describe these features by comparing CT scans performed at severe
 exacerbation with control scans.
Inclusion Criteria:

 -  Severe exacerbation episode of COPD, requiring hospital admission

 Exclusion Criteria:

 -  No exclusion criteria