Laura Carrero Gonzlez1,2, Thomas Kaulisch2, Ignacio Rodrguez1,3, Jose Manuel Prez Snchez1,3, Germn Peces-Barba3,4, Detlef Stiller2, Jesus Ruz-Cabello1,3
1Universidad Complutense Madrid, Madrid, Spain; 2Boehringer Ingelheim Pharma, Biberach an der Riss, Germany; 3CIBER de Enfermedades Respiratorias, Madrid, Spain; 4Fundacin Jimnez-Daz, Madrid, Spain
Apparent diffusion coefficient is a parameter used in HP 3He MRI to study, among others, the size of lung structures to establish differences between healthy and diseased animals. ADC is also sensitive to ventilation parameters. In order to visualize how changes in positive end expiratory pressure (PEEP) and breath-hold pressure affect the lung, ADC maps were acquired during the breath-hold at 10 and 25 mbar at null PEEP, PEEP equal to 5 and 10 mbar, at five time points from minute 10 to 70 of ventilation. ADC remains nearly constant over time in all measurements, but is strongly dependent on PEEP value at any breath-hold pressure. This effect may be due to the change of 3He concentration in the lung. Alveolar recruitment is also under investigation.