Integrated lung therapy method

Details Integrated lung therapy method Integrated lung therapy method

1999-12-21

2001-10-30

Weiss, John G. (Department: 3761)

Surgery

Respiratory method or device

Means for supplying respiratory gas under positive pressure

C424S009300, C600S529000, C600S530000, C600S531000, C600S532000, C600S533000, C600S534000, C600S535000, C600S536000, C600S537000, C600S538000, C600S539000, C600S540000, C600S541000, C600S542000, C600S543000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06308705

ABSTRACT:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a method for lung therapy, and in particular to a method for lung therapy employing magnetic resonance (MR) imaging.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The pulmonary alveolae in healthy persons are maintained in shape by a film of surfactant, which is a complex mixtures of sphingolipids and proteins, so that the alveolae are uniformly filled with air when the person inhales. Under certain circumstances, for example, as a result of an infection, or immaturity of the lung, or circulatory damage, a degradation of this surfactant film occurs, and the pulmonary alveolae collapse and are no longer filled with fresh air. An exchange of O
2
and CO
2
then can no longer ensue between the inhaled air and the blood. This problem also frequently arises with premature babies, because premature babies have not yet built up enough surfactant. As a treatment for this phenomenon, a medication selected from various types of artificial surfactant preparations is administered to the patient in the respiratory path. This serves as a substitute for the surfactant which is present in a healthy person. In administering this surfactant, however, it is very difficult to select and maintain an appropriate dose.
The extent to which a lung has collapsed, and the spatial distribution of the collapsed portion of the lung, are not known before administering the medication therapy. After administration of the surfactant, it is uncertain where, within the lung, the administered surfactant has taken effect. Conventional imaging techniques do not supply information which adequately spatially resolved to allow such a determination to be made. An overdose of surfactant can lead to complications such as deficient aeration, due to the excess quantity of medication presenting a physical disturbance to breathing. An inadequate dose produces an insufficient effect to address the pathology. An optimum form of surfactant administration, such as administration in solvents, aerosol, etc., has not yet been found. Other more radical therapies, such as surgical removal of a passive portion of a lung, likewise require functional information so that healthy tissue is not excised.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to provide a technique for lung therapy which allows a relatively precise determination of a collapsed portion of a lung to be identified, so that an appropriate medication dosage can be selected.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a lung therapy technique which allows the effect of a medication, administered to a person having a collapsed or partially collapsed lung, to be monitored.
The above object is achieved in accordance with the principles of the present invention in a method for integrated lung therapy wherein the patient is artificially ventilated and the residual volume of the lung of the patient is determined before the administration of a surfactant. The patient is then ventilated with a hyperpolarized gas for one breath, instead of being ventilated with air or an air/O
2
mixture. A high resolution magnetic resonance image of the now-ventilated portion of the lung is then obtained. Alternatively, a series of images of the time curve of the dispersion of the HPG within the lung can be obtained, or a number of successive tomograms of the lung can be obtained. In these images, alveolae which are open, and thus contain the HPG, can be clearly differentiated from collapsed alveolae, which contain little or no HPG. The need for administration of a surfactant, and the optimum form of administration, can then be determined on the basis of these images.
The administration of the surfactant, for example, can be determined by automatically or semi-automatically segmenting the bronchia in the two-dimensional or three-dimensional dataset represented in the image or images, and the components representing the gas quantities in the bronchia and alveolae can be integrated on the basis of signal density and distribution. After a waiting time of typically one minute, and when adequate oxygen saturation in the blood exists, HPG is again administered to the patient, and another MR scanning takes place. The images acquired in this subsequent scan are compared to the previous series, and the therapy is modified, continued or ended as warranted.


REFERENCES:
patent: 5215680 (1993-06-01), D'Arrigo
patent: 5985309 (1999-11-01), Edwards et al.
patent: 6042809 (2000-03-01), Tournier et al.

Affiliated with

Also associated with

Rating

Integrated lung therapy method does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.

If you have personal experience with Integrated lung therapy method, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Integrated lung therapy method will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

Comments { 0 }

Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2581905