TY - JOUR
T1 - Structural and functional alterations of subjects with cement dust exposure
T2 - A longitudinal quantitative computed tomography-based study
AU - Kim, Taewoo
AU - Lim, Myoung nam
AU - Kim, Woo Jin
AU - Ho, Thao Thi
AU - Lee, Chang Hyun
AU - Chae, Kum Ju
AU - Bak, So Hyeon
AU - Jin, Gong Yong
AU - Park, Eun Kee
AU - Choi, Sanghun
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2022/9/1
Y1 - 2022/9/1
N2 - Cement dust exposure (CDE) can be a risk factor for pulmonary disease, causing changes in segmental airways and parenchymal lungs. This study investigates longitudinal alterations in quantitative computed tomography (CT)-based metrics due to CDE. We obtained CT-based airway structural and lung functional metrics from CDE subjects with baseline CT and follow-up CT scans performed three years later. From the CT, we extracted wall thickness (WT) and bifurcation angle (θ) at total lung capacity (TLC) and functional residual capacity (FRC), respectively. We also computed air volume (Vair), tissue volume (Vtissue), global lung shape, percentage of emphysema (Emph%), and more. Clinical measures were used to associate with CT-based metrics. Three years after their baseline, the pulmonary function tests of CDE subjects were similar or improved, but there were significant alterations in the CT-based structural and functional metrics. The follow-up CT scans showed changes in θ at most of the central airways; increased WT at the subgroup bronchi; smaller Vair at TLC at all except the right upper and lower lobes; smaller Vtissue at all lobes in TLC and FRC except for the upper lobes in FRC; smaller global lung shape; and greater Emph% at the right upper and lower lobes. CT-based structural and functional variables are more sensitive to the early identification of CDE subjects, while most clinical lung function changes were not noticeable. We speculate that the significant long-term changes in CT are uniquely observed in CDE subjects, different from smoking-induced structural changes.
AB - Cement dust exposure (CDE) can be a risk factor for pulmonary disease, causing changes in segmental airways and parenchymal lungs. This study investigates longitudinal alterations in quantitative computed tomography (CT)-based metrics due to CDE. We obtained CT-based airway structural and lung functional metrics from CDE subjects with baseline CT and follow-up CT scans performed three years later. From the CT, we extracted wall thickness (WT) and bifurcation angle (θ) at total lung capacity (TLC) and functional residual capacity (FRC), respectively. We also computed air volume (Vair), tissue volume (Vtissue), global lung shape, percentage of emphysema (Emph%), and more. Clinical measures were used to associate with CT-based metrics. Three years after their baseline, the pulmonary function tests of CDE subjects were similar or improved, but there were significant alterations in the CT-based structural and functional metrics. The follow-up CT scans showed changes in θ at most of the central airways; increased WT at the subgroup bronchi; smaller Vair at TLC at all except the right upper and lower lobes; smaller Vtissue at all lobes in TLC and FRC except for the upper lobes in FRC; smaller global lung shape; and greater Emph% at the right upper and lower lobes. CT-based structural and functional variables are more sensitive to the early identification of CDE subjects, while most clinical lung function changes were not noticeable. We speculate that the significant long-term changes in CT are uniquely observed in CDE subjects, different from smoking-induced structural changes.
KW - Cement dust exposure
KW - Reduced global lung shape
KW - Reduced tissue volume
KW - Wall thickening
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85129985464&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.155812
DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.155812
M3 - Article
C2 - 35550893
AN - SCOPUS:85129985464
SN - 0048-9697
VL - 837
JO - Science of the Total Environment
JF - Science of the Total Environment
M1 - 155812
ER -